


31 Days of October (2018)

by Nefaelibata



Category: OCs - Fandom
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Crushes, F/M, Family, Festivals, Fluff, Friendship, Halloween, High School, LGBT, LGBTQ Female Character, Love, M/F, OCs - Freeform, Sisters, Slow Build, dialogue-heavy im not even joking, freshman, literally this whole fic is just people talking, seriously i killed my friend apparently, very slow build
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-02
Updated: 2018-11-18
Packaged: 2019-07-23 15:24:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 27
Words: 37,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16161644
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nefaelibata/pseuds/Nefaelibata
Summary: Welcome to the capital of Savaclorn: a small village housing a giant, internationally recognized wizard school. Collin, the bullied and shy best friend of Araija, a fiercely loyal and aggressive girl, finds himself whisked into drama he never chose to take part of. It all started when Araija finally dealt with the bullies, and Annabeth snuck her way between them. Will their tester loyalty and trust for each other remain strong?Probably.





	1. Hugs

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to my friend for giving me an image with some prompts, I am up for the challenge!
> 
> Well, I hope you enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collin is getting bullied, and he won't let his best friend, Araija, do anything about it.  
> 

  
  
Collin felt another paper hit the back of his head. His cheeks flushed with embarrassment and shame as whispers from the back of the classroom made their way to his ears. Though he didn't hear what was being said, he could only assume they were nothing pleasant. Hunching his shoulders insecurely and attempting to focus on his work, he felt another unmistakable pat on his back, and a soft crunch when another scrunched up paper hit the floor. Tears welled in his eyes, and he felt an ache in his chest.  
Bravely, he stood up and made his way to the front of the classroom. "May I sit in the hallway for a moment?" He asked the teacher quietly.  
She looked up from her computer and nodded, her eyes slightly wide at seeing his tear-filled eyes. "Of course. Take as long as you need," She sympathized.  
After bowing his head slightly at her, he straightened his back and attempted to confidently stride out of the classroom. When he closed the door gently behind him, everything he's been holding back for most of the week came out. He stifled heavy sobs and fell back against the wall, far enough away from that nightmare of a classroom, and pulled his phone out.  
**[12:03] _Me:_** _Araija answer pls_  
**[12:03] _Arabae:_** _yah whattup_  
**[12:03] _Me:_** _come now, I'm outside the force class rn_  
**[12:05] _Arabae:_** _k_  
He turned it off and shoved it back into the pocket of his finely-ironed black dress pants. He pulled his legs to his chest and buried his face between his knees. Heavy tears still escaped his eyes, not even lessening at the comforting thought of his best friend coming. 

Araija popped a piece of gum into her mouth and scribbled down more words from the board. She's currently in her specific magic class as well, just a couple floors down from Collin's classroom. Hour four is the only hour of eight they don't share, and unfortunately, the class Collin, her best friend, gets bullied in for no apparent reason. The two had memorized each other's schedules for both semesters after they became close friends while doing a school project at the beginning of the year. How lucky was it that they shared every class except one together?  
She felt her phone buzz in her pencil case and quickly opened it to see who messaged her. _Collin!_ She smiled happily and opened the messages, her heart fluttering with delight and excitement. It was not at all what she expected, however. _'Please answer?' Why wouldn't I answer?_ She thought but replied instantly. _Come now…_ She then realized what happened.  
Her hand shot up immediately.  
"Yes, Araija?" Her teacher called.  
"May I go to the bathroom?" She asked as kindly as she could without letting anger seep into her tone.  
"Yes. Take a pass."  
"Thanks," She slammed her phone aggressively down on her desk, startling fellow peers around her and letting them know: she's pissed, and snatched the bathroom pass. People glanced back at her curiously but minded their own business. Storming out the science classroom and up the stairs, adrenaline and pure hatred running through her veins, speeding to where her friend was desperately in need. 

He perked up at hearing heavy footsteps echo through the stairwell until they made it to the top. There she stood. A small, fiery ball of rage. Short black hair a mess from its usual neat bob, cheeks tinged an angry pink and still managing to look absolutely gorgeous in her uniform. "Araija," He whispered sadly.  
She sprinted over to him and fell to her knees, putting a hand on his back comfortingly and tucking his head under her chin. "Hush," She soothed and let him nuzzle into her. "Hugs?"  
"Hugs," He replied shakily and snuck his arms around her. She did the same but kept one hand against his head protectively. They rocked together gently and cherished each other's company yet again.  
After a moment of silence, she spoke, "The same guys again?"  
He could only nod; his body taken over by soft shivering and hiccups.  
"I'll kill them," she hissed out. "Shove their tongues down their throats and make them choke on their words." Her hands clenched tightly onto his shirt. "Give me their names."  
"What?" He gasped out and pulled back, shocked.  
"I'm serious," she said. Her eyes held no lie, as they were lit up with a dangerous fire.  
"N-No, don't… don't hurt them. O-or kill them…" He wiped away his own tears and sniffled.  
"Fine," She sighed. "You gotta tell someone else about this, boo. Sooner or later I won't listen to you and I'll hurt them real bad."  
"They'd-they'd just come back to me."  
Collin felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up as Araija, the girl everyone sees as disrespectful and only he allowed to see as polite, chuckled in such a way that he couldn't help but believe that she truly does have ill intent on them. "No, they won't. You know they never do." Now he understands why everyone stays away, and why she is the leader of whatever posse follows her. They are scared of her, and in this moment, he thinks he is, too.  
Nervously, he just nodded and let himself be taken into her embrace again. His heart was running a mile a minute, his cheeks red from blushing so hard, his palms sweaty and shaky. _If only she knew,_ He thought helplessly and moved to wipe his eyes again.  
"Gonna be okay?" She asked, keeping an arm around his shoulders.  
"Y-yeah, I think so," He said. "Thank you."  
"Of course." She trailed off softly. There was a brief moment of awkward silence, a moment of hesitation. Puzzled on what to do next. _He's got to know by now,_ She bit the inside of her lip anxiously and then stood up, still feeling short even when he's crumpled against a wall helplessly. "I'll walk you back in." She took his hand gently and pulled him up.


	2. Hot Chocolate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Araija snaps suddenly, and Annabeth, a girl who Collin and Araija both equally dislike, makes her first move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright. I've decided to try and make this a "prompt-based" October challenge story. If that makes any sense whatsoever.  
> I hope none of you mind that I'm using my OCs for this. Seriously, I cannot think of how this would even work out for me positively if I used fandoms.  
> Eventually I'll use them, though.

  
  
Savaclorn, the wizard school Collin and Araija both attend, was having a hot chocolate sale in the cafeteria one wonderfully cold morning. A beautiful October morning. "Araija!" Collin cried out and handed her a Styrofoam cup full of the hot beverage. "Here, I bought one for you!"  
"Aw, thanks!" She moved to take a sip and started sputtering curses when it burned her lips and tongue. "Wow, ouch."  
"Serves you right!" He teased. "Well, Kat never makes this hot of hot chocolate! Can't blame me, blame Kat," Araija whined.  
"Ah, whatever. I'll be in the classroom if you need me, okay?"  
"M'kay," She proceeded to open her locker and take her coat and backpack off without spilling the hot substance. She sighed as he walked through the door that was almost literally right next to her locker.  
Currently, it's the first homeroom. This "class" is almost like a zero hour period but as a homeroom class. During this time, one could go for help with other teachers, retake tests, or hang out with friends in class. To the surprise of many teachers in the building, a good portion of the total student body participates in the before-school-homeroom. That includes Araija and Collin.  
"You think Collin's gonna be here today? Got him good yesterday," Said some punk.  
Araija immediately perked up and listened in on the conversation. _He didn't tell me about what happened yesterday. I thought things got better, not worse…_  
"Yeah," the other laughed, "he sure bawled like a little bi-"  
"What's that you're gonna say about my best friend?!" Araija yelled at them. She slammed her locker shut. It echoed throughout the almost-vacant hallways. "You wanna finish that sentence?" She threatened.  
They froze in their tracks and turned around. It's the two boys causing Collin so much trouble caught in the act. "Sure, but what's it to you, shorty?" He taunted, unaware of what he started, or who she is.  
"Araija," Collin warned, putting a hand on her shoulder suddenly. "It's fine."  
"Bullshit," She snarled and shoved him away and stormed right up to them. "Wanna know what's in this cup?"  
"Huh, what's in the cup?" One of them asked, putting on a look and image of superiority.  
"A lovely vacation," She popped the lid off and let it fall to the floor. All was silent for a moment until the guy started laughing at her.  
"A vacati-ah!"  
They both cried out in pain as their legs got drenched with the piping hot drink. She moved her arm in an arc motion and threw it out.  
Collin gasped. _So she actually…_ He felt his face pale, and a sudden wave of shame and embarrassment. Embarrassed that Araija, as great as she is, made a fool of herself to help him, and ashamed that everyone now knows how close they are. How close he really is to her.  
Araija threw the cup to the ground and spat in their direction as they hobbled in pain to the nurses' office. "Pathetic little- hey, get back here! You wanna mess with him? Come at me!" She taunted, about to run after them, but got yanked back rather violently and pulled into her homeroom.  
"Araija! What, you out of your mind?!" Kat, her mother, and teacher cried out. "What makes you think to do that?!"  
"They're hurting Collin! I'm gonna kill them!" She yelled, struggling to get out of her military-strong arms. "They deserve it!" She spat.  
Collin was pale and embarrassed. He laid his head down on his desk and tried to ignore everything happening. All the questions, the attention, the anxiety Araija was unintentionally giving him.  
"No, absolutely not." Kat sighed and placed her arm around her shoulder. "Let's go, c'mon." She began to walk Araija down to the office, talking in hushed tones about things between only the two of them.  
"Collin, are you alright?" Annabeth, the school's main popular girl, asked. She stood by his side and placed a hand on his back.  
"Yeah," He replied.  
"…No you're not. Talk to me," She pressed.  
_No. Just leave me alone._ "I really am, thanks, though. She's just going off like that.. It's alright, Annabeth. Thank you."  
She sighed heavily and sat down at the desk in front of him. "Stop that."  
He looked up, confused, frustrated, annoyed. "Stop what?"  
"Making excuses for her behavior."  
"But I'm no-"  
"Hush!" She held up a finger. "It's not 'just going off like that' for her anymore. This is, what, the third time she's snapped and put you in this state? I know what's going on, Collin. I might be a popular girl, but that doesn't mean I don't know how this works."  
It was Collin's time to roll his eyes and sigh heavily. "You don't know her as I do."  
Annabeth laughed harshly, "And that's exactly what they all say. Collin, Araija is a toxic friend. Just because you see her as someone else doesn't mean that's who she really is. Just because you two are close, and just because you both enjoy each other's company does not give you the right to make excuses for unhealthy behavior. She won't care if you leave her, Collin. Face it. Look at the people she hangs out with."  
He shook his head. "No. You're wrong."  
"Huh-uh." She ruffled her hair. "I-um… overheard a conversation between her and someone else the other day, actually," Her voice went soft and sympathetic way too quickly.  
This, unfortunately, caught his attention. "Okay…" He trailed off, curious yet suspicious. Something similar has happened before quite early on in the year. Araija told him she's jealous of their quick closeness because "a bitch like her can't make good friends," but he thinks otherwise. It's not difficult to tell when someone stares. When they glare at someone you're friends with. When they take their spot whenever you're left alone.  
"She's just pretending. She's tired of you. She called you weak, and a crybaby. Telling her that you should toughen up and confront them," She said bluntly.  
"What?" He spat, exasperated. "You're lying. Stop it."  
She clicked her tongue and played with a couple strands of her hair, twirling and twisting it. "Well, I'm sorry that you're so blinded by her to see the truth. I can be your spy, Collin." She then left to return to her desk and make conversation with her small group of friends in homeroom.  
_Great. An entire hour with this…_ He sighed and buried his face in his arms again. _What if she's right? I-I shouldn't be… thinking like this. I should trust her. She's loyal, and… I know I can trust her, right?_ A deep, heavy, sadness fell upon his shoulders and made his chest feel like it was caving in. Again, he felt that longing ache. 

Kat closed the door behind her in the small counselor's office. She sat down next to her daughter on the gray loveseat and took hold of her hands that were stark white against her own brown skin. "Araija," She started softly. "I am not mad at you." The black-haired girl sniffed back tears. "I'm sorry." "Don't be." She set her hands down for emphasis and said, "I want you to understand that what you did was very wrong, and very inappropriate and unprofessional for school, okay? I want you to realize that violence is not the answer." Araija remained silent but nodded. "I understand that what happened back in Haldija was astronomically traumatizing for you, but I want you to try even harder to not let those instincts get to you. I have heard that your counseling sessions have been going well and that you are doing a lot better with understanding your feelings. This is true, no?"  
She nodded and wiped her eyes. "Yeah. I-I understood what I was feeling just then, but… but I couldn't process it. I snapped. Again."  
"Don't be ashamed of this, okay?" Kat looked at her knowingly. "The only thing I hope you work to improve more on is just that. Now, Liah is going to come in and talk with you about some things. I'm sorry I can't do anything else, but remember that I will never be mad at you for this because I understand what this all is like." "Wait, how?" Araija looked up from her lap with curiosity.  
"When we get home, I will tell you. It's far too long of a story for right now. Will you be alright?"  
"Yeah, thanks," She hugged her mom tightly before reluctantly letting her go back to class.  
And then Liah came in.


	3. Candy Corn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kat tells Araija the lengthy story of how she understands.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is more of a filler chapter than it is fitting for the prompt, but oh well.  
> I also rushed through writing this, so it's bad.

A light series of taps on Araija's bedroom door pulled her concentration away from her desk. "Yeah?"  
"Can I come in?" Came Kat's voice.  
"Yeah," She said and turned her body towards the very tall woman.  
"Do you still want to know what I was telling you in the office today? Like, the story?"  
"Mhm." She popped a piece of candy corn into her mouth.  
She sat down on the bed and ran a hand through her mob of long, dark red hair. "Very few people know about this. I'm-I'm still coming to accept it, but, uh… yeah," She started and played with her hands anxiously. "You know how all teachers at Savaclorn use magic, right?"  
"Uh-huh, it's a school of mages," Araija said and proceeded to keep eating her candy corn.  
Kat winced, looking hurt momentarily, but nodded. "Ever wondered why I never use my magic?"  
She shook her head quickly.  
"Well, I-uh… I don't have mine anymore," She said weakly. Araija's eyes widened comically, but it was more out of shock. Never once in her time with Kat, even while at the school, had she ever thought about why she never used her powers as openly as everyone else. "Now, before you ask-"  
"How.…do you even teach at Sav-?" They spoke at the same time, and chuckled.  
"I'm just about to explain," She paused, "but it's kind of hard to, so bear with me, please."  
Araija nodded and scooted around in her chair to get comfortable. She was feeling some sadness for her mom, and a pain inside her that was entirely new. She did understand that it was caused by seeing her mom, who is such a strong and confident and brave person, stripped down to self-consciousness and anxiety over something one can very easily live without. For spending almost one hundred years of her life involved with the military alongside Trevor, Araija thought she would've been beaten into perfection and live with a truly confident character. How wrong she had been. _How much are they keeping from us?_  
"Before I adopted you and your sisters–about one year before, I lost my powers. Now, I understand that this may seem like something that isn't a very big deal for anyone," She laughed helplessly, "but this meant more to me than you could ever imagine." She looked up and shot Araija a thoughtful gaze, squinting her orange-brown eyes. "Picture this, okay? Think of how close you and Collin are–I'm sorry to use this analogy, it's the only way that you can-"  
"Kat, I get it, it's fine," The teenager encouraged.  
"Oh, okay. Uh, anyway, imagine living in poverty and hearing stories about your other poor friends' lives changing because they visited a psychic. Just as Trevor and I both told you guys before. Now, picture yourself working several different jobs for several different people, underpaid, beaten, and treated like a slave, for months, only to raise _just_ enough money for talking with a psychic. This may sound ridiculous, because there is always the chance that none of it is real, and that is OK to believe. However, my story is true. When I went to see that psychic lady, I was told that I have a strong connection with the fire school, and that I should get it checked out as soon as possible. I was told that I will have immense potential with this magic, and an unusual level of skill with it." She stopped to breathe some. "When you're learning spells for your lightning school, you know how tough certain spells are to picture and pronounce?"  
"Yeah, I hate those ones," Araija pointed out and offered a piece of the sweet candy to Kat, who politely refused it.  
"Yeah, well, those spells were the ones I could easily learn. With my unusual amount of skill, I was able to learn immensely difficult spells very very quickly. Now, imagine yourself with Collin again, and think of how precious your relationship with him his, and how much you value it. When you went to go see the psychic, she told you that this thing that is most precious to you–in my case, my magic, but only regarding skill rather than preciousness–will be taken away from you someday in your future. That is what happened to me. The cost of my skill with magic was my own magical abilities. Ironic, huh? We didn't have a clear number of years for how long I'd have them, so I looked into training as soon as I could. Luckily, there was a military base at my town in San'akaari, and I enlisted. I soared through the ranks, and at one point, I was the most powerful pyromancer at that school. I went from using my magic solely for the military, to bringing it for street shows to help lift depressed peoples' spirits in the slums, where I used to live. My grandparents were so proud of me." Kat rubbed her chin for a moment. "I based all my success and work off of my powers, but I never forgot, so for those years, I was thankful every day for still having my powers, and I lived every day to the fullest."  
Araija was silent for a long time. She just stared at the floor, baffled. But then she asked, "Well how did you manage to get a job at the school then? Isn't that a requirement?"  
"What's the other subject that I teach besides English?"  
"Anatomy of magics? What's that gotta do with anything?"  
"Very few people know of this subject at college, or at least for my time, it was an esoteric subject. No other teacher in Savaclorn graduated with this degree. That was the deal. If I could eventually educate you guys on the anatomy of how your magic works, which is still a slightly veiled topic, then I would get to keep teaching here. I found the class absolutely fascinating. Maybe next year you can take the elective?"  
Araija shrugged. "I'm sure they're gonna make it mandatory for the rest of the years. But yeah, I will!"  
"Good," Kat sighed out.  
They sat in a heavy silence. Araija felt tense, unsure of what to say next, or how to finish the conversation without being blunt, or hurting her mom's feelings. "Thank you," She sputtered out awkwardly, "for telling me. That. Uh, your story. Thank you."  
"Of course. I figured it might've been a good idea for you to know eventually. I'll get to telling Sofie and Aowin eventually. Oh, but thank you for listening."  
"Yeah, I've got a lot of practice with Collin," She admitted.  
Kat's eyebrow quirked. "How's he doing, by the way?"  
"Fine, I think. Or so he's told me."  
"Good, I'm glad to hear it. Is he coming over again tomorrow?"  
"I think so. I hope so, honestly."  
"Awesome! Well-um, I think I'll let you get back to work. Sorry for interrupting."  
"No, you're fine. I'm done, anyway."  
"Ah, okay. See you around, kiddo," Kat ruffled her hair and then left.  
_Wow,_ Araija massaged her temples and exhaled slowly. _That's a lot. I wonder who that psychic lady is?_ She rubbed her eyes and stretched her back. All sorts of ideas and things running through her head about Kat and Trevor. _I should ask Trevor about this._ She picked up her phone and began typing something to him. _Is this really… appropriate to do?_ She bit her lip, conflicted, and deleted it. _No. Not yet._


	4. S'mores

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Araija and Collin have a fight.  
> Annabeth is now her target for a new one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter, and probably the next few, are going to be late.  
> I'm at the cabin, and I've got plans, so things are a bit off right now.  
> Also, I barely fixed the grammar on this one. I'll edit it later.

  
"Thanks for coming over today," Araija said and took a bite of her s'more.  
"Yeah, no problem," Collin breathed and looked down at his plate. His mind was racing with Annabeth's words. _Could it be true? Should I ask her?_ He was ashamed of having doubts about her loyalty.  
"You alright?" She poked his shoulder, concern evident. "You look… depressed?"  
He nodded quickly and swallowed his bite. "Yeah, I'm good," He said, strained.  
She snorted. "Liar. C'mon, what's up? You can trust me."  
_There it is._ He bit his lip nervously and sighed. "It's nothing, really. Just one of those days, you know?"  
She raised an eyebrow, suspicious. He dared to look at her. "One of those days? I've never heard you say that before…" She hesitated before adding, "Is this about yesterday?"  
"Yes," He admitted helplessly. "I'm sorry, I-"  
"No, no. I get it. Really, I do." She curled up in her blanket more and wiggled more into her pillows.  
He let out a self-deprecating laugh. "Shouldn't I be saying that to you? I mean, I get that you sorta… well, snapped." He rubbed the back of his neck and inspected his s'more before taking another bite. "I'm just-well, getting used to this. Not being harassed in class. That's it." _But Annabeth said… She-_  
"I-yeah," She said guiltily. "Sorry. I really tried. I mean it. I just-I can't help it. You're such an amazing human and should be protected at no cost. I don't want anything to hurt you." She put her plate on her nightstand and wiped her hands on the soft blanket around her shoulders.  
I have to ask. I can't-I… He felt tears burn the back of his eyes, and the unfortunate familiar ache in the back of his throat. "Are you really?" He asked sharply. "Did you really try?"  
"What?"  
"Do you really mean that?" He sniffed.  
"What kind of question is _that?!_ Of course I care! Collin, I'm your best friend! Why wouldn't I?" She frowned. "Where's all this coming from? I thought you trusted me?" She sounded hurt.  
He hissed, "Annabeth. She said you're talking about me behind my back. Is that true? Can I really trust you?"  
Her eyes widened. "That _bitch! _Why would you believe her?! You and I both hate her! Why would you-Collin, do you not trust me?"__  
He remained silent.  
"Answer me, please! Am I really that-that-"  
"Misleading? Yes. Yes you are."  
She exhaled, defeated. Disbelief and a painful sadness plastered on her face. Her body deflated and her voice was weak. "I can't believe you. This has gotta be a joke. Tell me it is."  
He sniffled and wiped away a tear. "Nope," He said shakily. "It's not." He paused to collect himself. "The people you hang out with when I'm not around–Araija, I can't help but-but think you might… I can't help but think you talk about me along with whoever else there is, that you agree whenever someone s-says something about me."  
She didn't talk for a very long time. The silence was uncomfortable and very awkward. What do I even say? How can I… I've been set up! That blonde is going to pay for what she's done. She looked up, startled that he began to grab his things. "W-wait where are you going?"  
"Home."  
"C-can't we talk this out first? I'm sor-" "Don't you dare. Annabeth made it pretty clear to me yesterday. Now I have my answer. I-If you won't bother to answer me, then that confirms it," He said stiffly and left her room. 

___Kat looked up from her book, sitting on a couch in front of the fireplace on the left side of the first floor. "Oh, hey kiddo. Gotta go home?"_  
"Uh, yeah. My mom texted me. Goodnight, and thanks for the s'more!" It hurt to be false in front of her. To lie about something. Who knows what Araija might tell her when he finally leaves.  
"Collin, wait-" She was cut off by the door slamming shut.  
"Tsk. He must be late," Her mom said and returned to reading her book.  
"Idiot," She grumbled under her breath before breaking down silently. She didn't want to explain this to Kat. She simply couldn't. _She just wouldn't understand._ After closing her own bedroom door, she practically dove into her bed and started sobbing. Her mom's words began to have a new meaning to her. _"Now, imagine yourself with Collin again, and think of how precious your relationship with him his, and how much you value it. When you went to go see the psychic, she told you that this thing that is most precious to you will be taken away from you someday in your future."_ She didn't even think of how Collin would've felt after her outburst, or what that snake Annabeth was trying to do. It wasn't very difficult to tell how jealous she is of how close Araija is to Collin. Everyone knows she likes him, and everyone knows she despises Araija with a passion, though being discreet about it most times.  
_Well, since she took my friend away from me, I'll take something precious away from her._ She decided with a small, psychotic smile. 


	5. Fireplace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collin is having second thoughts about how he reacted the day before.  
> Araija is depressed and starts a revenge plan against Annabeth.  
> Annabeth gets what she wants, and Kat is oblivious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter sucks.  
> I began to forget what I wanted to write half-way through it.  
> Today and tomorrow's chapters will probably be late. Again.

  
Sofie, one of Araija's sisters, slammed open her bedroom door and yelled, "ARAIJA! WHY AREN'T YOU AWAKE YET?!"  
She groaned tiredly and pulled the covers around her more. "Go away, sis. I'll get up when I want to."  
"WAKE UP SLEEPY HEAD!" She screeched and yanked the covers off of her.  
"You're gonna be late for school!" Aowin reminded from afar.  
"I have an entire two hours. I'll be fine," She snapped angrily and wrestled the covers out of Sofie's hands. She ignored the rest of their reminders and tried to get back to sleep. Kat was gone far before any of them since she's a teacher and needs to be at the school at a certain time. Araija and Collin usually meet up in the mornings, but… not after yesterday. _I can't face him like that._  
She was alerted by Aowin that she and Sofie were going to leave and make their way to school for "homeroom one," as she calls it. None of them know of the fight between Collin and Araija. Sighing, she reluctantly got out of bed and threw on her uniform. She trudged into the bathroom to fix her hair and small amount of makeup, and to tuck her shirt in and smooth out as many wrinkles as possible so she still looks good. _Annabeth,_ the name bitter in her mind. _What am I gonna do with you?_ She tied as much of her short hair into a bun as possible and pulled out the sides so they hung down cutely. _I could strip your ego, turn your words against you, I could take Collin away…_ She bit her lip and stuck bobby pins into her hair. _I don't know yet._ Rather than feeling blinding fury like she had began to last night, she felt mischievous and thoughtful.  
She shoved her laptop and lunchbox into her backpack and zipped up her large binder (it does not fit in her backpack), and took them downstairs to the landing. She put on her coat and slipped on her shoes and hat and gloves, and everything else she needs, and locked the door once she got outside. The crispness of the air a sudden and slightly unpleasant contrast to the comfortable warmth from inside. For once, she had no one to walk with. Her heart ached at the thought as she walked past Collin's house. _I'm sure he left at the same time he normally does today._ She scoffed and kept walking, now frustrated. _Going to see Annabeth, probably. Telling her that she was right the whole time._ Her steps grew quicker.

"Hey, mom," Collin greeted once he entered the kitchen. His voice was thick with sleep, and his eyes were squinted, as the lights around him were far too bright.  
"Good morning, dearie! How did you sleep?" She poured a cup of coffee into her mug and sat down at the kitchen table.  
"Fine, I guess." He yawned. "Did Araija stop by for any chance?"  
"No, why?"  
"Mmh, nothing. I'll get dressed now," He murmured and went back to his room. He sighed when he remembered how he behaved with Araija. How he snapped at her, not giving her a chance to speak. He brought Annabeth into the conversation, and accused her based off of her words instead of listening to what she had to say. _I messed up._ He sighed and threw off his pajamas. _Gods, I really did._ He began dressing himself in his uniform, buttoning his white shirt and pulling on his jacket. Slipping on black pants and socks, and finally his tie. _Man, she always did this for me._ He sighed and fumbled with it clumsily. "Mom!" He called. "Can you help me?" He asked as he opened his door.  
"Yeah, what for?"  
"Can you help me tie this?" He held up his tie shyly.  
"Oh! I thought you didn't wear one?"  
"Well-"  
"Here, let me get it." She took it from him and slipped it under the collar of his shirt, and in a flurry of movements, she finished and flipped the collar down. "Lookin' sharp!"  
"Thanks," He laughed.  
"Go get breakfast! You haven't eaten anything yet," She pushed.  
"I'm gonna get breakfast at school again. They have some really good waffles there."  
"Sounds good! Your father is in the kitchen."  
"M'kay," He murmured and went to greet him as enthusiastically as he could. "Good morning!"  
"Morning, son! How are ya?"  
He shrugged. "Fine. You?"  
"Doing great!" He clapped his shoulder a little roughly and huffed out a laugh. "You leavin' soon?"  
"Um, yeah, actually. I'm just saying good morning." He smiled and was let go. I need to apologize to her. How, though?  
He pulled on his coat and backpack and shoes. "I'll see you this afternoon! Love you!" He hurried outside, wincing when he realized that he forgot to brush his teeth, and his hair, and forgot to put on some cologne. _Ugh, well… whatever._ He started the short walk to school early as usual. 

"Good morning, Collin!" Annabeth greeted enthusiastically. She waved to her friends and joined him. "You look a bit… rugged today. Something happen?"  
_Why bother to ask? You already know._ "Yeah. Something did happen," He answered sharply and opened his locker.  
"Care to tell me? I don't see Araija anywhere. I'm surprised she's not with you."  
"It's like this every morning. She comes later than I do."  
"Yeah, but you look like you need someone to talk to."  
_…It can't hurt. It wouldn't be that bad, would it?_ He sighed and nodded. "Fine." She waited patiently. Her face held a look of genuine concern, intent, focused. Just as Araija always did. "I messed up big time."  
She hummed, sympathetic. "How so?"  
He hesitated before saying, "What you said about Araija and talking about me… I-It was running through my head. Yesterday. While I was hanging out with her. I um… I accused her of that. Without listening to her first. Long story short, we're not really friends anymore."  
"Oh," She said softly. "Collin, what I told you was the truth. You called her out on it. Not accused."  
His mouth went dry. "N-No, but…" Annabeth smiled sadly, yet softly, and put a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. Collin, if she didn't do anything, and I did, who do you think you can trust more now? Me or her?" She looked at him with raised eyebrows, expectant.  
"Yeah, yeah. I know. I just never imagined she would do such a thing."  
"Well, just look at the people she hangs out with. It's no surprise."  
"I guess. I should've expected it, though."  
She put a hand on the small of his back. "C'mon. Let's go to class."

A chilly breeze just barely missed her when she finished crossing the school's courtyard made entirely of cobblestone. She got doused in the delicious heat and smells of the school's breakfast. It was soothing to her. "Morning, Araija!" Taylor, one of the girls from her posse, greeted happily.  
"Hey," She replied and made her way to her locker.  
"How are ya? Surprised you didn't come here early. Class starts in five," She explained. She ran a hand through her long brown hair and leaned against the locker next to hers. "I'm surprised you haven't run off yet. Usually you're with Collin by now." "Yeah, well, I got a bit of a late start today."  
"Oh, okay. Whelp, I'll see ya later, Ara!" She skipped off to her class just as the first bell rang.  
Wonderful, She thought sarcastically and made way to her first hour class. Revenge was the only thing on her mind once she entered that classroom. A couple girls who commonly hang out with Annabeth were crowded around Collin, talking to him and attempting flattery. He was sitting in the front of the room rather than in the back with her.  
It was like that for the whole day.  
Almost desperately, Araija would try to make eye contact with him from afar, whispering his name, giving up. Even though she is a blunt and extroverted person, her ex-best friend makes her feel shy. Plus, he is upset because of her, and she understands that he probably won't appreciate an obnoxious approach.  
Strangely, to the both of them, people picked up on their lack of contact. Small comments here and there from fellow peers in their grade asking where the other is. Unbeknownst to them and each other, it hurt. It hurt their hearts how they couldn't just go to each other and talk it out. It angered them to know that Annabeth wanted this to happen, that this was her plan to get what she wants.  
Collin, unfortunately and guiltily, feels more inclined to believe Annabeth because of how obvious things really are. How very true what she said could be. She's made very good points to back it all up. Araija's posse, her atrocious behavior, a seemingly "alter-persona" from school and at home; it all makes sense to him, but he still remains conflicted. After all they've been through together, how much she's unloaded on him, how well they know each other, he still has doubts about what both girls tell him.  
Araija couldn't believe it. She thought he trusted her. She thought he understood it all. She thought she could rely on him to keep remembering where she came from, what she went through, how much of an impact it had and still has. She thought he got how much she hates Annabeth with a passion. The blonde snake who may act like she's dumb, but knows and sees more than she says. An enviable amount of social intelligence. 

 

Kat started up a fire right when they got home. She was grumbling with annoyance while setting her bags down and marching over to the fireplace they used just the other night. "Should just install some better heaters or something."  
"Kat, the house is huge. Heat rises. I'm pretty sure it's all up," Sofie said with an obvious tone.  
"You should install fans that can blow heat down," Aowin suggested.  
"Yah I know. I'm just old," She groaned out and threw the match into the fireplace.  
Araija whistled. "How old are you again?"  
Their mom glared at her playfully. "Twenty two."  
"Eh," She dragged out. "Don't ya need to add a couple hundred years to that?"  
"OI! A _couple hundred?!_ Watch your mouth, kiddo! Might forget dessert for you, someday!"  
Sofie was laughing at her, Aowin just rolled her eyes.  
"She's much older than just a couple!"  
"Hey!" 

The afternoon once full of energy died down to an evening of serenity. The three teens doing their homework in their own spots, Kat grading assignments for her classes and creating the schedules, and both fireplaces alight and warm. Araija's mind was preoccupied with listless ideas for revenge she could initiate. She lifelessly stared into the fire, amusing herself with the fact that the raging flames displayed exactly how she felt. _I suppose I could do it the traditional way._ She sighed and put her homework aside. _I just wish he would've listened to me._ She took her phone out and sent a text to the one person she knows can't keep their mouth shut: Taylor. 

**[6:04] _Me:_** _hey guess what_  
**[6:05] _tay.lord:_** _wut_  
**[6:05] _Me:_** _annabeth just texted me saying she has collin all to herself now_  
**[6:05] _tay.lord:_** _SRSLY OMG WHAT LOL_  
**[6:05] _Me:_** _yah she also told me that he lied to me for a while smh_  
**[6:05] _tay.lord:_** _loL THAT SUCKS WHAT SHOULD WE DO_  
**[6:06] _Me:_** _idk I wanna fight her tbh_  
**[6:06] _tay.lord:_** _why tho_  
**[6:06] _Me:_** _cuz hes still my bestfriend and I love him tbh_  
**[6:06] _tay.lord:_** _bro like actually?_  
**[6:06] _Me:_** _…yah. Tell anyone and ill kill u literally_  
**[6:07] _tay.lord:_** _k I get it I wont but I gotta say something about annabeth tho lol_  
**[6:07] _Me:_** _pls do I want her dead_


	6. Star-gazing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a lot of texting.  
> Collin apologizes.  
> Araija is skeptical.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't think of anything for this chapter.  
> Really, I wanted to have Araija outside but I figured that would be really angsty and I don't wanna make things cliché, but it already is. Sorry!

Music blared from Collin's earbuds as he scrolled through the posts on his social media. He passed the usual selfies, drawings, and aesthetic photos. He came across one of Araija's posts of them together. They posed together with giant smiles as they held up their s'mores. Nostalgia and a heavy sadness bubbled up in his chest as he opened up Araija's account. Surprisingly, he wasn't blocked, nor were any of their pictures together deleted. Of course, he wouldn’t do it either.  
Suddenly, several notifications from various programs spammed the top of his screen.  
Intrigued, he clicked on the one currently shown and was met with a ton of messages from different people in the school. "What the…" He furrowed his eyebrows and opened the first one. 

**[7:07] _sprinklesorquinnies:_** _bro what's going on between you and ara_

He opened another. 

**[7:07] _aowinforthewin:_** _what did you do to Araija_

He felt very nervous. 

**[7:07] _tay.lord:_** _araija wants to fight annabeth bro whats up_

_Araija wants to fight?_ He bit his lip and replied. 

**[7:07] _Me_** _: a fight? Oh god_  
**[7:08] _tay.lord:_** _yah, whats up with annabeth shes claiming u yaknow_  
**[7:08] _Me:_** _she's what?! Oh my god_  
**[7:08] _tay.lord:_** _idk what she gonna do now .hey whats up with you lying to ara btw_  
**[7:08] _Me:_** _lying? What do you mean?_  
**[7:08] _tay.lord:_** _well annabeth told ara that u lied to her for a while idk with what but shes probs upset_  
**[7:08] _Me:_** _oh no, I cant believe this omg this is all my fault wtf im so sorry_

He felt frustrated tears build and tumble down his cheeks. He never meant for any of this to happen. _Why is she so protective over me? It's nice sometimes, but this is… taking it to the next level. I never told Annabeth that I lied to her. This has got to be fake._ He sniffled and wiped them away as he furiously texted Araija. 

[7:13] _Me: ara you gotta stop this somehow, b as much as I love you I don’t understand why you're doing this. I get it and im sorry. I shoudlnt have just believed her like that, now I see that she just wanted me for herself. I'm so confused because she told me that she heard u talking trash abt me or something and then she said I shouldve expected it because of who you hang out with and how you’ve done it to other people before and im so sorry_

 

Araija sat on her bed listening to strange language-d music that she couldn't ever seem to get enough of while staring at the sky dreamily. The voices of the group of seven gorgeous boys filled her mind and heart with hope and joy and happiness and encompassed the dark parts of her mind with a comforting and loving warmth she cherished with a passion. The boys themselves were like the stars. Gorgeous, wondrous, mysterious, far away. It's a very esoteric genre of music. A very small percentage of the people at her school know what it is, and that's saying a lot for the generation of kids that are internet-obsessed. She's heard things about the internet between Earth and Xelenyr being connected, and since this type of music is out of her world–literally–she thinks the rumor is true.  
Just like Collin, her phone was being blown up with messages from people on her various media programs, but she ignored them. This is just as she wanted. She's sure Annabeth is part of the group of people who she's ignoring. _I'll see what I've created in the morning. I'm sure Aowin and Sof know about it already._  
While she flipped through a couple different songs to fit her mood, her phone vibrated a couple times in a repetitive pattern. That vibration was custom-made by Collin, and since they texted all the time, it's unmistakable that it's him. _Collin? Why are you texting me? I thought you'd have deleted my contact by now…_ She debated with herself to check, or not to check.  
Screw it. Karma's coming at me, anyway. She snatched her phone off her bedside table and eagerly drank in his words. She frowned and read it again and again, trying to determine whether it was really him typing or not. He could be hanging out with Ron and Quinn and they just sent it for him. She quickly replied back. 

**[7:13] _Me:_** _prove it is this really u?_

Eagerly, and curiously, she waited. 

**[7: 13] _collinme:_** _im sorry idk how_  
**[7: 13] _Me:_** _bro y didn’t u tell me irl_  
**[7: 13] _collinme:_** _im intimidated by u kinda and also I just want this thing with annabeth to stop please_  
**[7: 14] _collinme:_** _and I also don’t want to be dragged in the middle of this again and be accused of something_  
**[7: 15] _Me:_** _she could b making u type this. I don believe you_

She shut her phone off afterwards and threw it across the room. _I don’t care how sorry you are. You need to tell me in real life. I don't want to be played again._ She scowled and looked back up at the sky. It was cloudy, now. The stars peeking through small gaps and holes, but otherwise invisible.  
_I can't let Annabeth make you think those things she says about me are true._


	7. Black Cat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collin finds a cat on his way home from school.  
> This cat is not as it seems.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This cat will appear in chapters later, probably.  
> Well, you'll see. I guess.

Of course, Collin didn't talk to her. He was afraid and also stuck with Annabeth. She didn't let him even think of her. That whole day felt like torture for him. No privacy. No words. So much invasion. He supposes that it's an effective method to try and get rid of all thought, but he and Araija had a coming-together the previous night, and he wants–no, _needs_ to talk to her.  
"Okay, Annabeth. Listen. I talked with Araija last night. Thanks for uh… listening to me and stuff, but I'd just like to t-"  
"No!" Annabeth snapped and grabbed his wrist tightly. "No! She's trying to convince you that I'm wrong. Collin, listen! What I'm telling you is the truth. Someone like her wouldn't go after you like this. It's all an act." He shook his head quickly and snatched his wrist out of her grip. "You don't know what you're talking about. Now please, let me go."  
She sighed angrily. "Fine. But if you get your heart broken again, don’t come to me."  
"I never did in the first place," He shot back with a charming smile and marched down the stairs and into the school's courtyard. _Maybe I can solve this myself?_ He checked his phone to see several messages from Araija. _Great._ He rolled his eyes and shoved it into his pocket. 

He walked slowly, observing everything around him to try and get his mind off of Araija and Annabeth and everyone else bothering him. Trees of green and an assortment of red, yellow, and orange were swaying gently in a chilly breeze, tall grasses a wave of dying green, birds flying and chirping around, squirrels scampering up trees. He breathed deeply, feeling a wave of much-needed peacefulness overcome his body. He looked up at the sky momentarily and focused on the abstract shapes of the fluffy white clouds. Blue peeked through, and the rays of the sun in the horizon created pathways of light behind them. Looking farther, he could see the nearly endless amount of farmland golden with corn and other plants nearly ready for harvest.  
The entire country of Savaclorn is like one giant plot of farmland, except for the occasional city or town scattered around. The capitol of the country, ironically, is the small village where the wizard school resides; where Collin and Araija and their families live. In the west, about an hour away, lies the SMA. The military academy. Kat is one of the founders of it. Trevor, her best friend, is the second. During the summertime, she works over there. During the rest of the year, she's at the wizard school teaching English and the anatomy of magics. Araija's told him plenty of times earlier in the year. 

That cloud looks like a cat, He noted with an amused smirk that fell not long after when a small meow caught his attention. Confused, he looked around and stopped walking. _Where is it?_ He heard another and headed in the direction of the noise.  
Left, right, backwards, forwards, retracing his steps until finally, _finally,_ he found it.  
It was a black cat with these gorgeous and large violet eyes. The most adorable thing he's ever seen. He gasped and knelt down. "Hey there!" He smiled and petted its head. "Why are you all the way out here?" He picked it up and cradled it in his arms. "Cutie." It mewled in response and squirmed around to get comfortable. "I'll bring you back to town and see if anyone owns you."  
He hummed softly as he carried the cat into the small town. He asked anyone he came across if they know the person who owns this cat. So far, nobody does. "Great," He grumbled out. He scanned the buildings with his eyes until they landed on the sign for the pet store. "Ooh!" He practically jumped over to the door and yanked it open.  
"Oh my!" Exclaimed the woman at the counter. "How can I help you?" He gently set the cat on the counter and said, "I'm wondering who this belongs to. I found it on my walk from school, and so far, no one knows who it belongs to."  
She smiled and ran her hand along its back. "Well, a nice couple came in an hour or two ago and adopted her. They mentioned something about a surprise for their son."  
His eyes widened slightly. "Remember what they look like?"  
"Well, one of them had blonde–no, both of them were blonde, and tall. That's all. I'm sorry, young boy. You do look like the man, though."  
"Thank you," He sputtered out stiffly and took hold of the cat again. "Have a good day." He left the pet shop and rushed home. "It can't be…" He murmured and opened the door to his house. 

Collin was greeted with the sight of his mother was scurrying around quickly, talking to herself frantically, and his father doing the same thing. _What is going on?_ He cleared his throat loudly and curiously greeted, "Um, hello? You guys okay?" He stood there awkwardly with the black cat in his arms, watching his parents behave strangely.  
"Good afternoon, Collin! Um, your mother and I are looking for something very important," His father hollered from somewhere in the house.  
"What are you looking for? I could help you."  
"No, no! W-we're good!" His mother rushed out of the kitchen and came over to hug him. "How was y-" She stopped dead in her tracks, wide eyed. Frozen in place.  
"What?" He asked, panicked.  
"Honey, could you come here?" She called to his father.  
He practically flew down the stairs. "What? What is it?" He asked, frantic. Then his vision was directed at Collin. He gasped. "How did-"  
"Guys, what is going on?" Collin asked, suddenly panicked. He looked behind him and all around. "Is there something behind me? On me? Is it the cat?"  
"Y-yes!" His mother exclaimed.  
"I-I was-"  
"Where did you find her?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"Sh-she just vanished an hour ago. A-and now she's here. With you. Where did you find her?" His mother asked quickly.  
"On my walk. Just outside the village on the sidewalk…" _What in the world? They're random people, spontaneous, but… I never expected them to do something like this. Why now? Since when?_ He was just confused.  
"Well, now that we've got her back, Collin, this is your cat now. Your mother and I decided to surprise ya, but I suppose you found her already. Strange." His father clapped his shoulder in that same rough way he always does and winked at him. "Treat 'er well, son! Shouldn't be too hard for ya. The lady said she's a real sweetheart and is well-trained already. She doesn't have a name, though. So, pick and choose!" He laughed out.  
"Um. Okay…" He looked back down at the adorable ball of black fluff in his arms and thought real hard for a moment. Rose? No… Violet! Um… Something not… basic? He groaned. "I don't know," He whined out. "I guess I could call her… Night Violet!" The cat purred and mewled, approving of the name.  
_"Night violet?"_ His mom asked, disbelief obvious.  
"Yeah! I like that! Up top!" He and his dad hi-fived and laughed.  
"Perfect! Thanks, guys! You're the best!" He exclaimed happily, suddenly realizing: _I have a cat now! She's cute and cuddly and I think she likes me, too!_

He spent the rest of the afternoon playing with the cat and doing homework.  
_Maybe things are going to get better from here._


	8. Pillow Fights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Araija and her sisters have a pillow fight while Collin invites Ron and Quinn over for their insight.  
> Annabeth is fuming, and confronts Araija online.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> big oof  
> I hope this doesn't suck.

"Bro, you got a cat? Since when?" Quinn commented and knelt down, rubbing Night Violet's ears and head.  
"Yeah, uh, well, my parents just decided to get her yesterday," Collin laughed.  
"What a nice Friday afternoon surprise," Ron said.  
"Right?" Collin threw himself on his bed and sighed. "Guys, it's been a while since we've all hung out like this."  
"I assume this is about Araija," Quinn said dryly. "It's all you've been really talking about, anyway, man."  
"I just… I want your guys' help or something, okay? Please. I-I really messed up. I don't know how Araija's holding up."  
"So.…what did you tell her? You mentioned you texted her just the other day."  
"Oh yeah, I heard about that. What did she say?" Ron leaned against the edge of his bed and looked up at him. "I'm sure she's probably like, angry or something."  
Collin fumbled for his phone and clicked it a couple times to open up his messages. "Here, this is what I sent her, and here's what she said." He handed his phone over to them, watching anxiously as they read through them. Night Violet laid on his lap, purring as he stroked her soft fur for comfort.

**[7:13] _Me:_** _ara you gotta stop this somehow, b as much as I love you I don’t understand why you're doing this. I get it and im sorry. I shoudlnt have just believed her like that, now I see that she just wanted me for herself. I'm so confused because she told me that she heard u talking trash abt me or something and then she said I shouldve expected it because of who you hang out with and how you’ve done it to other people before and im so sorry_  
**[7:13] _araisin:_** _prove it is this really u?_  
**[7:13] _Me:_** _im sorry idk how_  
**[7:13] _araisin:_** _bro y didn’t u tell me irl_  
**[7: 13] _Me:_** _im intimidated by u kinda and also I just want this thing with annabeth to stop please_  
**[7: 14] _Me:_** _and I also don’t want to be dragged in the middle of this again and be accused of something_  
**[7: 15] _araisin:_** _she could b making u type this. I don believe you_

Ron whistled. "She's angry, probably."  
Quinn made a protesting noise. "Maybe. It seems like she's skeptical. What even went down to make this happen, Collin?"  
"Yeah! Dude, you've been so secretive lately," Ron accused.  
"Well, uh, right after Araija threw that hot chocolate, Annabeth told me that Araija was talking about me behind my back and has been lying to me. About what? I'm not so sure yet. So then the next evening she and I were hanging out-"  
"With Annabeth?" He gasped out, wide-eyed.  
"No, with Araija. So that was running through my head like, the whole time, and so I kinda got upset for no reason and accused her of that. Annabeth said it's the truth, and really, I don't know who to believe anymore," Collin admitted helplessly. "I already know how much Araija hates Annabeth with a passion, and I shouldn't have done any of that, but I did."  
"It's not your fault." Quinn leaned over his bed to pet the cat mindlessly as he spoke. "It was Annabeth who put that in your head in the first place."  
"True," Ron agreed. "But I thought you and Ara had total trust for each other?"  
"Yeah, but what she said had a good point. The people she hangs out with, you know? What she's done to others already, um, how she's mean to everyone else but me…"  
"Oh."  
"Yeah…"  
They sat in silence awkwardly. Collin's cat mewled and curled into his arms. Instantly, he felt comforted. "I think I have an idea now."

 

Sofie screeched like a pterodactyl and slammed her pillow on Araija's head. The once-silent hallway echoed with the surprisingly loud thump and annoyed yelp from the innocent victim. "SOFIE! YOU-" She growled and tried wrestling the pillow from her sister's grip, but fell to the floor when she jumped away cackling like a maniac. "I'M COMING FOR YOU!" She cried out and snatched her own pillow and started chasing the blonde around the house.  
Aowin, who was sitting on the patio outside her and her sisters' rooms doing homework, opened the door that led inside, annoyed, as she witnessed the scene before her. It was like a pinball machine, except her sisters were the balls bouncing off of everything they came in contact with.  
"AOWIN HELP ME!" Sofie screamed and threw herself behind the long black-haired girl.  
"Wait! Araija!" She yelped out as she got hit on the side.  
Everything stopped for a moment.  
"Oops," Araija laughed nervously at her sister's expression that slowly grew menacing.  
"You'll pay for that!" Aowin yelled out and ran to grab her own pillow and joined the fight.  
"I'M SORRY!" She screeched as she hounded on her at a terrifyingly fast rate.  
"Yeah! Get her, Aowin!" Sofie cheered and chucked her pillow at Araija as she came by. 

_What in the world is happening out there? Sounds like a warzone, blast it!_ Kat slammed open her bedroom door and squinted her eyes, trying to focus on what she was seeing. "What the-"  
"KAT! HELP! THEY'RE BOTH TRYING TO KILL ME!" Araija hollered desperately and hid behind her. "Ha _ha!_ Now I have a shield! You can't touch me!" She teased.  
"Ah, calm down, girls," Kat chided softly. "Y'all done with homework?"  
"Yah," They answered simultaneously. "Oh, uh… okay. Well, please, calm yourselves. I'm trying to grade some assignments, and I'd appreciate it if you'd keep the noise down at a minimum."  
"M'kay," Sofie said and turned around, going back to her bedroom.  
"I'll go back to studying," Aowin said.  
Confused, Araija peeked up at Kat with a raised eyebrow. She got a shrug and disappointed sigh in return.  
"Whelp, I'll do the same, I guess. Or maybe I'll just bother them."  
_How strange of them to just… go back to themselves after this chaos,_ Kat noted. 

Araija's sisters stood at the corner with their pillows, ready to strike just as she was coming. They raised their arms up steadily once her footsteps got closer.  
_Closer…_  
Closer…  
Closer…  
And… _Now!_  
They brought the pillows down as roughly as they could on the short girl and burst into laughter. Araija joined them, not even bothering to smother them with her own fluffy pillow. "Ugh, you guys are so annoying," She groaned out, but followed them into Sofie's room.  
"Why are _you_ doing in here?" She asked.  
"Bothering you." Araija pulled out her phone and burst out laughing.  
"What is it?" Aowin asked.  
"Annabeth texted me. Pfft, wait, lemme read it:  
_'Araija, I know what you said about me. I don't know why you did that. I never said anything to Collin, despite what he probably told you. I was just trying to comfort him and maybe said something.'_  
"It gets even better!  
_'Collin told me himself that he doesn't even like you anymore and would like it if he and I hung out more. Guess that means I've taken your place~"_  
"Woooooow," Aowin said, eyebrows raised, unimpressed. "She's really desperate, huh?"  
"Man, there's plenty of other people out there! Why doesn't she just choose someone else?"  
"It's because I'm–was… his best friend," Araija said. "Eh, whatever. He doesn't trust me anymore, so why do I care?" She shrugged and laid back on her sister's soft carpet.  
"You two are so close, Ara. It's practically like you guys are dating!"  
"Eugh! Really?!"  
"Yeah, _really."_ They said.  
Araija proceeded to groan and whine about how stupid that is for the next fifteen minutes.  
Then she went to bed and cried herself to sleep because they're right about how she and Collin were so close, and how they practically behaved like a couple, but it wasn't like that…  
Not really, at least.


	9. Warm Blankets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collin and Araija, during the first time they ever hung out, watched a movie.  
> This is a filler chapter and a flashback.

_"Oh, Collin! How nice to have you here," Kat smiled._  
_He looked up from his spot at the long, formal dining table, startled. "Hah, yeah, thank you I hope you don't mind that I'm here?"_  
_"No, not one bit! You can come over as often and for as long as you like. Just as long as you guys get homework done first, yeah?" She kicked off her shoes and threw her coat on the coatrack._  
_"Oh yeah!" Araija exclaimed. "We're almost done, actually. Ooh! Hey, can we like, watch a movie or something when we're done? You can pick, Collin."_  
_Her mom nodded with a fond smile. "Sure. It'll be good to finally make use of that stupid program I keep pointlessly paying for."_  
_"Yay!" The two teens cheered with large grins._  
_Collin immediately went back to work, furiously scribbling things down in his notebook as Araija typed away quickly on her laptop. "Oh man, I'm totally gonna get an A on this essay," Araija said._  
_"Essay?"_  
_"For our gym project. You chose the slideshow, I chose the essay."_  
_"Oh, right. Yeah, I got full points on that."_  
_"She already graded it?"_  
_"Just for those who got it done early, yeah. It's still due the same day, though. I'm sure she'll grade yours quickly once you turn it in."_  
_"Ah," She typed a few more words and cracked her knuckles. "Done! You done with your work yet?"_  
_"Yah just let me finish this one… sentence…" He slammed his pencil down and huffed. "Finally!"_  
_They hi-fived and scrambled over to the couch. "Dude, this is our first time hanging out together. I'm having fun!"_  
_"Even though we do homework and stuff first?" Collin asked dryly._  
_"Heck yeah! I get to spend it with my best friend! Of course it's fun!" Araija picked up the remote and turned the TV on. Collin grabbed the brown, quilt-like blanket laying on the couch and threw it across their backs. "Oh, thanks. So, anyway, what movie or show do you want to watch?"_  
_"Hmmm…" He squinted to read the titles. "How about that one?" He pointed._  
_"Which one?"_  
_"Uh.…Zero Hour. That one."_  
_"Sure," She clicked play and eagerly waited for it to load._  
_The screen went black, then gradually transitioned to a gray one where glowing teal and golden-yellow lines looping to form the words "Zero Hour" was displayed. Underneath it, in smaller letters in the same font, read "based on a true story."_  
_"Ooh, this should be interesting!" Araija gasped out and shook her best friend's shoulder. "Good choice!"_  
_He grinned and snuggled more into the blanket that was warming up from both their body heat. "Thanks. I'm excited for this, too!"_

_A young male's voice started:_  
_"I'm everywhere. On national news stations, newspapers, articles online, YouTube, just to name a few. If you don't know me, you'd best be an infant new to this world, or someone incapable of learning. I'm infamously famous. Wanted by the government, wanted by the rich and poor, wanted by the bored. Everyone wants me, but they can never have me."_  
_The screen flashed to various cityscapes and unfamiliar locations full of people speaking otherworldly languages._  
_"I'm an illusionist. A master, at that."_  
_Suddenly, a beautiful pair of eyes that faintly glowed teal appeared_.  
_"I'm inhuman. A time wizard. Ageless," He whispered the last word and smirked. "I'm everywhere, but I'm also in one place."_  
_Various buildings came into view. There were large crowds and lines in doorways. People leaving and entering, talking excitedly, all while he took their money that dissipated to glowing dust._

_"What in the world?" Collin asked, fascinated. "This has got to be a satirical movie." Araija paused it and looked over at him._  
_"How so?_ "  
_"Well, he's an illusion-major time wizard, for one. That should be obvious, but it could be satire since he's… wait…"_  
_"it's based on a true story, though."_  
_"True. This still doesn't make much sense to me. Whatever. Let's keep watching."_  
_Araija resumed the movie and proceeded to watch with fascination, snuggling into the warm blanket she and Collin were both sharing. Kat brought some popcorn down for them, wordless, and called his family to let them know that he's allowed to stay for as long as he wants to on any day._

It was one of the best evenings Araija ever had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I will make the movie a separate story in case you're interested.  
> I've got ideas for it!


	10. Oversized Sweater

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Araija and Annabeth have a civil argument, and Araija gets personal.  
> Collin now understands some things.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't know what the heck to write for this chapter.  
> And yes, I know, it's choppy and _very_ random.

"Oh, girls, I got an email last night, forgot to tell ya–whoops!" She finished the rest of her coffee. "Dunno if you guys got the email, but y'all can wear what you want to school today-"  
"Yesss!" Araija hissed out, interrupting her.  
Kat pursed her lips, feigning annoyance. "Archmage Abigale said, 'Tomorrow's Monday, I'm lazy, so let's have a lazy day!'"  
"Is that… _really_ what she said?" Aowin asked, amused.  
"Yeah, actually. Says so right here in the email." She pulled her phone out and showed the three girls the screen.  
"Cool! I'm wearing my onesie!" Sofie exclaimed and ran back to her room to change.  
"I'm just wearing what I normally do," Kat said. "I'll be back. Make sure you girls are ready to leave! If you want to come with me, of course." She exited the kitchen to get ready.  
"Nice! I've been waiting for another one of these days. I think we'll have a few more this year." Aowin gasped excitedly. "Do you think we could convince her?! Araija, we totally should!"  
The short girl nodded rapidly and made a thoughtful noise. "I like that idea!"  
"We should get ready."  
"Yeah... Araija chugged the rest of her glass of milk and put it in the sink and hurried back to her bedroom. She threw off her pajamas–a fluffy pair of pants and a loose t-shirt, for her favorite outfit: black leggings with one of Kat's old sweatshirts from the SMA several sizes too large.  
She roughly brushed her hair and pulled it up into a small ponytail. "Araija!" Sofie screamed.  
"What?!" She screamed back.  
"I found a strand of your hair on the sink! That's disgusting!"  
"Clean it up yourself!" She cried out and slipped on her socks.  
"Ugh! Fine!"  
She rolled her eyes and got her backpack and binder ready. She marched down the stairs and dropped them both to the floor at the base of the stairs. 'I'm ready to go!" She called out to everyone as she tied her shoes and put on her coat.  
"Yap, same here, kiddo!" Kat said joyfully as she effortlessly carried her two gigantic bags full of files and electronics. "You girls ready yet?"  
"Now we are!" Aowin yelled from the bathroom and followed Sofie down the stairs with her own backpack.  
"Alright, let's go!"  
Their walk was short and fun. Kat was cracking jokes and telling stories from her earlier years at the SMA, trying to keep her girls warm so the chilly October breezes didn't turn them to ice cubes. It worked for the most part. Araija complained most of the way about being cold, though. 

Collin, after shoving his coat and empty backpack in his locker, looked up as the main door to the school opened. Kat stepped in, and soon after her daughters. Araija was grumbling about something and immediately slipping her backpack off. He gasped softly and then, with a shy smile, said, "H-hey, Araija!" He made his way over to her nervously. "I-um… Hi! How are you?"  
"Fine." She said.  
At a loss for words, he stammered out, "W-well um… th-that's good." She took everything out of her backpack and put it on the floor. "S-so, I'm um… I wanted to apologize for not-uh, talking to you that one day."  
"I'm sure you are."  
He winced, shame and sadness falling upon him. "A-Annabeth didn't let me talk to you. She-"  
"I don't care."  
"H-huh?"  
"I said, I don't care. Whatever she made you do isn't my problem." She started walking to Kat's classroom for homeroom one. "I'm sure she'll be here in a minute or so. I really pissed her off." She snorted.  
Kat perked up. "What's this, now?"  
"Oh-uhm… nothing, Kat," Collin answered nervously.  
Araija wordlessly set her stuff on her desk and left the classroom, now waiting for Annabeth to arrive. _I'm gonna get him back._ She clicked her phone's power button and pocketed it. After a long, boring weekend, she made a lot of time for herself to reflect on the whole situation. Rarely ever does she succumb to solitude for that purpose. She, after the fight, made a promise to herself to get Collin back. All feelings aside, disregarding his discomfort, ignoring her own frustration. She'll do this right, and she'll prove to Collin that she is genuine and true, and not lying to him, and to Annabeth that liars like her never get what they want. Only what they deserve. However, Collin's feelings matter more to her than the lovely satisfaction of winning. Civil discussions are the way to go. 

Annabeth passed through the large glass doors and into the small locker bay. She, with fiercely squinted eyes, glaring, glanced around until she landed on Araija. Her lips formed a scowl, and her brows furrowed drastically. "Good morning," She spat.  
"Hey there, Annabeth," Araija spoke in the same tone. Collin watched the two from the doorway helplessly. A terrible, burning frustration rising in the pit of his stomach, and a wonderfully present sting of unshed tears as he watched the two walk away appearing to have a civil conversation. He returned to his desk, now at the front of the classroom alongside Annabeth, glumly.  
"You alright there, kiddo?" Kat asked.  
"Yeah, I think so. It's just-drama. Araija and Annabeth– _again."_  
"Ah," She said. "I gotcha there. Anything I could do to help?"  
He laughed sadly. "Honestly, I think that'll make things worse."  
"Oh dear." She clicked her tongue and shook her head. "I've never understood things like this, or why they happen."  
"What? How?" "Well, back in the old days in San'akaari, education was not mandatory for kids. Ya learned everything from your parents, mostly. I was sent to school, but it was strict, and not fun like it is now."  
"Aw, that's kinda sad."  
She scratched the back of her neck with a grin. "Sure don't miss it, though."

The two girls strolled together in painful silence. They could feel the fire and hatred between each other. The mere inches of empty space. They strolled tensely until they arrived at Annabeth's locker. She shot a quick glare at the shorter girl and knelt down to open her locker.  
"I'm not going to break into your locker, gods," Araija drawled, annoyed.  
"Could've fooled me," Annabeth sneered and pulled the gray door open. She unloaded her things and began talking, "Collin doesn't deserve you. You behave like a gangster, taking pride in your reputation of being feared. You don't seem to grasp empathy, and your loyalty scares him."  
Araija rolled her eyes and leaned back against the other lockers. "He's not scared, he's just getting used to it."  
"No, have you seen how he behaves around you?"  
"Yeah! He's a naturally shy and flustered guy who needs to be protected and loved forever and ever," She answered obviously. "He told me."  
"Well, there's a difference between what he _tells_ you and what he actually _feels,_ Araija," Annabeth snapped, slamming her locker while she spat her name.  
"I know! I know that! And that's my situation exactly!" Araija said angrily.  
All anger and defensiveness Annabeth displayed faltered to confusion. "What?"  
Realizing she said too much, Araija shook her head with an annoyed scoff. "Nothing." They stood awkwardly for a moment. "You can't say Collin doesn't deserve me," She accused.  
"Oh? And why is that?"  
"You don't know him like I do, and you don't know me like he does! You do realize that he has been getting bullied in his force class for these past weeks, right?" Her tone was vicious, but she was feeling absolutely calm.  
"You're lying! Don't make me feel pity for him! This has got to be a joke! Araija, that's such a low point to lie about. To make me try and pity him and understand why y-"  
"I threw my hot chocolate on the punks who were bullying him in class because they deserved it for hurting someone I hold dear to me." Araija was seething. Her dark blue irises blending in with her black sclera. "You've messed with something far more precious than just an innocent friendship, Annabeth."  
She was speechless.  
Neither of them noticed how many people began flowing into the school, eventually stopping to eavesdrop their argument, and nobody noticed how Collin and his two friends joined them.  
"Suffering through the after-effects of where I came from for _four_ years, to where I am now, I have my immense amount of progress accredited to Collin. You know what he did for me? He just listened. He listened to what I had to say, and in return, I did the same. Who do you have in your life that will do that for you regardless?" Araija started.  
"I have plenty of people! Have you seen how many followers I have? I'm popular! Plenty of people will listen to me!"  
"And will they keep your secrets?"  
Annabeth gaped, infuriated.  
"Just because I talk about other people does not mean I abuse loyalty to my best friend," Araija spat and walked away, roughly pushing people out of her way as she stormed into the office to see Liah. 

Taylor tapped Annabeth's shoulder.  
"What?" The white-blonde snapped.  
The brunette sent her a soft smile. "Congrats."  
"For what?"  
"For being the first person to not get beat up in a fight with Araija, duh!" 

Collin clenched his fists tightly as he listened to what Araija had to say, and how absolutely oblivious Annabeth was to the magnitude of her words. _Simply disregarding communication as followers on Instagram, bah!_ He clenched his jaw and grabbed Quinn and Ron's wrists tightly and dragged them to a less-crowded area of the school.  
"Dude, this is bad," Ron said.


	11. Vacation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This takes place after the argument Araija and Annabeth have (Progresses through the week quickly and lands during MEA break)  
> Liah decides to step in and do something about the pathetic argument between the young _almost_ -couple.  
> Drama is resolved, and things are entering a more cliché state than before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOF. I'm late.  
> Do I care?  
> Yes.

The drama between Annabeth and Araija calmed down after the day the two talked things out. Rumors flitted around about who Collin decided to go with, who might've been bluffing, theories about what Araija was really implying when she said, "You've messed with something far more precious than just an innocent friendship," and others revolving around the two girls. 

_"And I'm too freaking scared to go and tell him what's up," Araija sighed and looked down at the floor helplessly._  
_Liah sighed lightly and rested a hand on the table. "Araija, look at me," she said. She softly smiled at the young girl when they met eyes. "That boy is conflicted and being lied to by Annabeth. I know it. I am not telling you this because you need the support, but because it is very obvious how he still wants to be your friend. I am more than positive that he came to his senses after hearing what went down just now."_  
_"But-but…" Araija huffed out a whine. "I-I can't…"_  
_"You can't what?"_  
_"Go and… go and talk to him, yaknow?"_  
_Liah nodded and pulled out a piece of paper and pen. "Here's something to try, alright?" Araija straightened up and looked at what she was writing on the paper. "Just try this. Write out the little thoughts that come into your head on this piece of paper. The thoughts about Collin or Annabeth or the whole situation." The paper read 'Little Thoughts.'_  
_"And what is this supposed to do?"_  
_"Well, when you've filled the whole paper, bring it back to me, and I'll tell you from there," Liah explained._  
_"Uh, okay… can I like, draw on here, too?"_  
_"Yes, of course. I mean, write anything, but maybe focus it more towards the situation at hand."_  
_"Okay," Araija took the paper and stood up. "Thanks for listening, again…"_  
_Liah handed her a pass. "Of course. Come back any time. There is no limit as to how many days you have to fill up that paper, remember that!" She called joyfully as Araija left her small office and made her way to first hour, the 'Little Thoughts' paper and pass in hand._

Throughout that week, Araija did just that. She was pleasantly surprised to notice how very little of a need she felt to go to Liah. By the time it was the end of the day, a fourth of the front side was filled up with little scribbles and thoughts. That very night she went to organizing them by drawing lines around each particular phrase or paragraph she wrote. Secretly, she thanked Liah thousands of times for making her do this. She felt she could freely think about whatever she wanted to with no judgment, writing out how she felt for Collin, how far her bitter resentment for Annabeth went, what Collin helped her with, what Annabeth destroyed. It felt so wonderful to unload it. 

Little does she know, Collin was called down to Liah's office to do the exact same thing.  
_Since neither of them are stepping in to talk to each other, I'll do it for them._

That week for them was uneventful. Araija and Annabeth stayed away from each other, and Collin and Araija were too afraid and shy to try anything. However, both of them on Monday of the week after, returned to Liah at almost the exact time. Perfect timing, in Liah's opinion. She planned this, after all. 

"O-oh, um, I'll go-sorry for interrupting," Collin stammered out flustered and turned to leave.  
"Collin! Come back here, we're almost done!" Liah called.  
He nodded, gulping anxiously.  
She decided to get right to business when the door closed. "Alright, you both have papers filled out, yes?"  
The two teens nodded slowly, looking at each other warily, knowing that Liah planned something at that moment.  
"Perfect! Exchange them."  
"Huh?!" They screeched in unison.  
"Trade your papers."  
"No!" Collin yelled, horrified. "I-I wrote personal things on here! I can't share them w-with her!" "Same here!"  
Liah sighed and compromised, "Read two things you wrote to each other. I'll be waiting outside. This is my attempt to help you both get back to being friends again. This drama between you two has gotten bad enough." She left and closed the door.  
What an interesting woman. Collin winced. "Uh, sh-should I start? I don't… I don't understand why she's making us do this."  
Araija clenched the hem of her skirt tightly. "Yeah, I agree. And, um, I guess you can start." She bit her tongue, holding back unpleasant words she had for the counselor she once thought had patience for her unusual shyness around him.  
He sighed and scanned through what he wrote. "Oh, um, here… _'I wish I never said that to her, and I wish she would've understood why I did.'_ " He then read another one " _'I miss her company, her humor a-and… and hugs, Ara I miss you why did it go this far?'_ "  
She stared at him, guilty-looking, mouth parted slightly. "R-really?" "Yah!"  
"I'm sorry," She said softly, and looked down at her paper, clutching it tightly and nearly ripping it in half. "U-um… _'I wish he would have listened to me instead of exploding like that. I get that Annabeth wants this, but I didn't think he'd fall for it,'_ " She paused. " _'She ruined it. Who do I have now?'_ "  
Liah peeked through the small glass window on her door, eager to see the progress of the two. She was disappointed to find them just staring at each other.  
"You're right," Collin admitted with a harsh laugh. "I was-and am gullible. I can't believe she got a rise out of me like that." He sighed and rocked back on his feet anxiously. "So, what now?"  
Araija shrugged, looking at the ground shamefully. "We're both at fault here… I should've talked to you since I'm more… upfront, I guess," She forced out. 

They stood in silence, tension and emotion flooding the room and making the air feel warm and hazy. "Friends?" Collin suggested quietly.  
"Always," Araija replied instantaneously and pulled him into a forceful hug. "Screw you for making me cry for several nights in a row."  
He gasped softly, hesitant in returning the hug. "Cry? Several nights? I-I well… I mean, I cried, too, but um…"  
"You were confused. It doesn't matter anymore," She mumbled and squished him once, then let go. "Sorry."  
"No, no, you're… you're fine. You're great, it's just-" He laughed nervously. "What are we gonna do about Annabeth now?"  
She snorted and raised an eyebrow, looking up at him rather coyly. "Well, we can tease her for a bit. Pretend to be cool, drop some chaos bombs here and there…" Araija listed several things, a grin growing from amused to mischievous as she watched the blonde roll his eyes and scoff out a laugh as her ideas and suggestions progressively grew more and more ridiculous. 

"Well, looks like you two are friends again, and my job is done!!" Liah smiled as she barged back in, nearly hitting Collin with the door. "Whoops! You okay there?"  
"Yes," He said.  
"Good, good! Here's a pass for you two. It's not too good to miss class, now." She shoved the small blue slip of paper into his hands and ushered them out. 

"Sheesh," Collin breathed once they left the office entirely and slowly walked back to class, their arms bumping together lightly and creating a bubbly, electric sensation. They strolled in silence, unsure of what to even talk about after all that went down. How they felt the whole time? How great it is to have the other back? No, it's like throwing a chunk of dirt into the ground and burying it with soil, only to dig the chunk out again. What's the point? You get the same thing. It's simply pointless to dig up such sadness again after it was resolved, albeit rather quickly and abruptly, and in the least convenient of places. "You talk with her every day?"  
"Most days, yes," Araija sighed. "She's not like that with me, I swear. She's way more chill and not as… rude?"  
He snorted. "Yeah, I can imagine." 

They entered Mr. Welson's classroom. He teaches "mystical biology." The class focuses on plant life, mostly. Occasionally, he teaches the class how to make alchemical potions or learn spells necessary for a part of a unit. Really, you could call it "nature class."  
Mr. Welson stood in front of the class, pointing to a small potted plant he was holding up in his left hand. "The importance of leaf, root, and flower identification when collecting reagents for the potion needed to activate a level of acidic elevation to let this particular plant grow cannot be emphasized more than what I have been reminding you all for the last couple days." He put it down and clasped his hands together. "The quiz is tomorrow, and you all have the homework assignment to do. Do not be afraid to speak with me for help."  
The classroom erupted into loud chatter and a flurry of movement as students traveled across the classroom to meet up with friends. Araija and Collin walked to his desk.  
"Oh! Welcome, welcome!" Mr. Welson exclaimed. "Everything I went over in class is simply a recap of yesterday. I'm more than positive that you both will do just fine on the homework assignment." 

The two nodded and scooted over to their desks in the far corner of the classroom.  
"It'll be easy," Araija commented as she pulled out the packet she and everyone else was handed the day before. "I'm already half way done. You?"  
"Mhm, same." Collin tapped his pencil against his desk thoughtfully for a moment. "You busy for MEA break?"  
A shy smile grew upon her face. "No," She said. "Are you busy for MEA break?"  
"Nope!" He returned the same smile. "You know what that means?"  
"The ultimate triple sleepover?!" She screeched excitedly, bouncing in her seat.  
"Yes!" They hi-fived and hugged and got to work. 

 

People stared as the two were walking. Collin's arm slung around Araija's shoulders comfortably while her arm wrapped around his midsection tightly, just as they always do. There was a… different meaning being drifted and played around with throughout the student body. After a large fight? A boy and a girl as best friends? Hmm.  
"Kat is okay with this, right?" "Oh yeah. Can I grab a couple of things before we go to your place, though?"  
"Yeah, of course."  
Araija unlocked the door and hurried inside, sprinting up the stairs and grabbing a bag and throwing necessities into it. She came rushing out almost as fast as she entered, red-faced and huffing for air. "Whew!"  
"Good to go?"  
"Yah, let's go!" 

He escorted her to his house, attempting to keep conversation going to ease his nerves. _What am I nervous for? We do–did? Ugh, whatever. We've done this plenty of times already._ Araija started repeatedly pressing the doorbell, her signature announcement. The door opened and revealed Collin's mother, who was pleasantly surprised to see the short girl again. They sparked up conversation easily. This gave him enough time to collect himself and throw his stuff on the floor by the small coffee table in the living room.  
"Well, you two get started with your work, now! I'll be in the kitchen working."  
And work they did. Both of them, a mix of their recently-restrung friendship and elevated optimism, collaborated in a way they felt was more productive than any other time they had before. The intent with getting things done, with motivation to figure out the misunderstood. Laughing. Communicating. _And maybe_ some flirting. 

Throughout the next couple days of MEA break, the two played hours of videogames, spamming their internet history with memes and videos, chatting about whatever they felt like, and enjoying each others' company. 

_Oh how I needed this,_ Araija thought as she stared at her gorgeous friend from the side of her eyes. She grinned and pinched at his knee lightly, and laughed at his girly yelp.  
"What was that for?!"  
"I'm tired!"  
"Well then go to bed. I'm staying awake."  
"Ugh. Dude, that means you're spending less time with me."  
"Just stay up."  
"But I'm tired."  
He huffed and shut off his phone. "Fine," He whined out and adjusted his pillows.  
Araija rolled onto the floor and pulled her blanket off the bed. "Goodnight!" She cooed.  
"Uh," He started. "Y-you can sleep up here… if you want to." He cringed internally at how strange it sounded for him to suggest that.  
"Really?"  
"Y-yeah. Here, um, I have another pillow." He threw it at her lightly as she practically jumped up onto his very comfortable and very warm bed.  
"Thank you," She said softly with a cute smile and rolled up into a burrito with her blanket before covering herself with his wonderfully soft comforter.  
"Any time. Goodnight."  
"Goodnight."  
Collin's dreams were interesting.


	12. Friendly Ghosts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collin is visited by two very strange entities.  
> They tell him things that make absolutely no sense.  
> Now, all he has to do is figure it out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WHOOPS  
> Late again!  
> it'll happen for the next ones as well. Probably.

"Goodnight."  
Collin smiled to himself and laid on his side facing opposite to Araija. Faintly blushing, heart racing, on the same high he always feels whenever he's around her. He's not blind; he knows it's love. He screwed his eyes shut tightly, trying to force his body to relax, to convince his mind that there's nothing wrong with this, that this shouldn't be weird after those long, agonizing, and dramatic days of separation. He focused on his breathing, trying to calm his heart from violently hammering against his chest, letting his mind become preoccupied and obsessed with calming down and falling asleep.  
Araija's soft snores filled the silence, a steady sound he listened to until his body finally, _finally_ relaxed. All emotion fading into the night, relieving his body of their unwelcome stresses. Very quickly, he faintly realized, did the realm of sleep fall upon him, pulling him into its cold and comforting arms… until something unsettlingly heavy laid itself on his chest. 

Night Violet, his cat, flashed briefly in his field of hazy vision, her eyes very brightly-glowing purple. His heart started racing again, only this time from panic. _This is not what's supposed to happen when I sleep. What is going on?_ His eyes snapped open (suddenly overwhelmed by the sight of his cat with still very brightly-glowing eyes standing on his chest), his body jolted, and he thought he sat up. He thought he called for Araija's name. He could _feel_ his voice. He could just barely feel himself move, but… he made no noise. He did not move. _I'm… paralyzed?_  
"Wakey, wakey, Collin!!" He heard a woman's voice coo. Night Violet's eyes suddenly turned into bright purple light that flashed briefly and turned into blurred figures of the same light. _What in the world…?_ His panic practically disappeared and turned into extreme bewilderment. His cat's body was gone, but he still felt the pressure of her standing there.  
"Good to know you're here!" Another woman's voice exclaimed.  
"Now, sorry we had to contact you like this, but… We think it's important that we tell you sooner rather than later." The pink entities stood at the side of his bed, looking down at him.  
He couldn't make a sound. "You can call me Night," Said one.  
"And you can call me Violet," Said the other girl.  
"The name of your little kitten," Night said. "Anyway, we're sure that you're confused and panicking right now, but please, calm down."  
"That girl, Araija, the girl you're sleeping with-" Violet snickered, "how lewd!" She teased and giggled. "You are very important to her-"  
"Very important-"  
"And we want to remind you that you should treat her well!"  
"Violet, that's not what we came here for!" Night huffed. "Your close friendship with her is important. So important that it's become the line between life and death. Well, more like sanity and suicide."  
_Suicide?!_  
"What Araija went through as a child in the slave schools is much more traumatic than you might think. She, for the years growing up with Kat up until she met you, was alone. Without you, accepting her for who she is, she still has no one. Teachers and the whole student body at Savaclorn all judge her and–most of the time–disapprove of her behavior with no empathy as to why."  
Night agreed. "Well, that's because they don't know why, but yes."  
"Collin, you are what's keeping her together," Violet said seriously.  
"She is very understanding, but when something involves Annabeth, that empathy is thrown right out the window. Remember to never believe what she says about Araija."  
"And as the new owner of the Tome of Fellowship, feel free to reference pages to get your relationship a kickstart!" Violet said happily.  
_What? This is too much for me! I don't understand what is going on! Please, explain!_  
"Sorry! We can't just yet! Our energy is being sapped from this. We're the goddesses of love, not of sleep paralysis!"  
"Just reflect on what we said and try to figure out what works for you. We'll be back sooner or later," Night said.  
The two spiritual entities flew right back into Night Violet's eyes, and just then, her body was visible again. 

Collin stayed laying on his back to avoid disturbing his cat… or… whatever it is now. He raised his arm, testing to make sure he has control of his body again, and brought it down gently to pet Night Violet. _Visited by the goddesses of love, huh? What the heck are they even talking about?_ He bit his lip anxiously. _Suicide? That can't be. Does that mean it'll happen if our friendship falters again?_ Dread pooled in his stomach. _Does Annabeth have anything to do with that?_


	13. Baked Goods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collin tells Araija about his dream.  
> They find the Tome of Fellowship Violet spoke of.  
> Things are still a mess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm a mess.  
> Big oof.

"Really? Wow, that's so funny!" Araija exclaimed and put a forkful of hot pipa into her mouth. The small, cube-shaped, cotton-candy flavored cake was a favorite of everyone's. The young kids in the village especially love it. She hummed with satisfaction and shoved more into her mouth.  
"Man, you really love that stuff, don't you?" Collin mused. He took a bite of his chocolate donut, looking up at her with raised eyebrows.  
"Mhm!" She nodded and swallowed it. "Yah, this cake is amazing. I can't believe you didn't get it this time!"  
"Well, I needed some chocolate," He shrugged. His first ever sleep paralysis experience still ran fresh on his mind even though it's been a couple days since then. All energy meant for trying to understand what the goddesses were saying went towards debating whether or not he should tell Araija.  
"You okay?" She asked, eyebrows furrowed with concern.  
"Yeah," He said.  
"You had this… look. Is everything alright? Are those punks hurting you again?"  
"No, not at all. Regarding school, everything's fine. It's just-" He sighed and lowered his voice, "I-I had a weird dream. It was a couple nights ago, but um, I searched it up and apparently it was sleep paralysis?"  
Her eyes widened in shock. "What?"  
"Y-Yeah, well, um, it was rather confusing instead of scary."  
"Okay, please tell me, I'm really intrigued." She leaned in so he didn't have to strain his voice much.  
_We're so close… I could just-no._ He shut his eyes and sighed. He let his head hang a bit. "It's really stupid, but here goes nothing."  
He explained how Night Violet and Night and Violet appeared in his dream. He explained how he was feeling emotionally and mentally, what his body was feeling, how bright the purple figures were glowing… everything. Araija listened intently, never once interrupting him, only encouraging him to get it all out. "So.…long story short, my cat is possessed."  
She broke out into a grin. "Do you have that book?"  
"What book?"  
"The Tome of Fellowship, as they called it."  
"Oh, um, I actually don't know," He admitted sheepishly.  
"Well, what are you waiting for?! Let's go figure out what all of this means, because I'm confused, too!" She stood up abruptly, grabbed her cubes of cake, and wrapped them in a napkin.  
"Wah?! O-okay!" He snatched his unfinished donut and took another bite as he quickly walked after her. _Goodness, for such a short girl, she sure is quick!_ Accidentally, he snorted at how hilarious that thought is.  
"What's funny?"  
"Nothing!"  
She pursed her lips and squinted at him suspiciously. "Hmm…"  
"Okay, okay! I just thought about how fast you are for being so short."  
She gasped melodramatically, playfully offended. "How _dare_ you tease me for being short! I thought we established my height as acceptable!"  
They burst out into loud laughter, attracting weird stares from random people as they walked by. 

"So, where do you think it is?" Araija asked, whispering for no reason as they stood in the middle of his room.  
Collin shrugged. "I dunno. In my desk? On a bookshelf? I don't have a clue what it looks like."  
She groaned. "Well, they were helpful."  
"Pfft, right."  
They practically tore apart his room, well, they also had to put everything back because his mom would _freak out_ if they left a mess. They lifted the furniture the best they could, taking books off of the bookshelf, inspecting each and every one's cover, searching through his desk drawers, behind and under. They looked everywhere. Nothing.  
"Maybe I just had a weird lucid dream?" Collin breathed out helplessly and jumped onto his bed, laying on his side.  
"Maybe," Araija agreed and laid down next to him. She took out her phone and quickly typed a reply to Kat.  
He scooted around to get comfortable, adjusting his pillow, until something caught his eye. "Um, Ara."  
"Huh?"  
"I think… do you think…" He pulled the pillow away and threw it to the floor. "This is it?"  
A tan, leather-bound book now lay exposed from where his pillow once hid it. She gasped softly. "Dude, open it. You're the new owner of it."  
Letting out a short and awkward grunt, he took it into his hands, surprised at how much the small thing weighed. "Wow… It's heavy." He hesitantly opened the cover. Its pages were a soft pink, and the black letters were… well… changing. Transitioning from Zellium's language to English so he could read it. "Woah," He breathed, fascinated. He flipped through the pages, noting how many words were on each one and making a face. "That's a lot of words," He mumbled, less than pleased. "I don't know what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn't this."  
"What does it say?"  
"What do you mean? You can't be serious. It's written in English."  
"No, it's not. I'm looking at Zellium script right now."  
"What?!" He squawked. "B-but… it transitioned from…"  
"…Transitioned?"  
"Yeah, it like, did this thing… the words all changed to English."  
"Um, try reading something, then."  
He squinted and brought the book closer to his face, struggling to read the words. "…unto where one no longer supports the other, lives hand-in-hand with neighbors, loves one along with oneself, shall then come the day of reckoning for their-"  
"I don't even know what you're saying."  
"I'm reading it in English."  
"I'm hearing some strange archaic words from who knows where or when."  
"What the-"  
"I guess it really is meant only for you," She smiled a bit. "That's so cool. Whatever it does, fill me in! Tell me every bit of detail, but I guess not really whatever is contained in the pages."  
They laughed at that.  
"Yeah, that's a huge disappointment. I did not expect that to happen." He closed the book and set it aside next to him. "I'll read it tonight."


	14. Pumpkin Patch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trevor, Kat's best friend, decides to stop by and take the kids to a pumpkin patch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a filler chapter, kinda fun, taking a break from the plot.  
> This was really *really* fun to write.

Kat locked her classroom door and sighed tiredly, but joyfully. "You kids ready to go?" She looked at the group of six. Sofie, Ron, Quinn, Aowin, Collin, and Araija all stood together in a jumbled mess of loud conversing. "Guys," She repeated. They didn't hear her–or they just ignored her. She sighed and rolled her eyes fondly, understanding that the group of teenagers probably couldn't care less if she asked them or not. With a small, amused snort, she started the nearly fifteen-minute walk back home, and they followed. _Good to know they're not totally ignorant._  
Now, you may be wondering why Kat and several other students of Savaclorn do not drive to school. The answer is simple: the capital of Savaclorn, in other words, the small village where the wizard school is, does not permit the constant use of motorized vehicles. It is not illegal to own one and keep it in a garage and to take it out occasionally. Important business-owners like Kat have permission from the government to use such vehicles but only for those purposes. For example, should she need to drive out to the SMA herself, she has the ability to do so whenever. The northern part of Savaclorn, however, is more modernized due to its closeness to WinterHelm, a New York-like country that permits the use of cars and trucks and trains.  
"Kat! Is that Trevor's truck?!" Aowin asked.  
She shot her a grin and nodded. "Yup! You betcha!"  
"Really?! Why didn't you tell us?!" Sofie whined.  
"Because they probably have 'business stuff' to do!" Araija teased and ditched everyone to start running ahead. "I'm gonna be the first to greet him! Beat me if you can, losers!" She laughed rudely and ran faster. Collin chased her, and eventually, the whole group joined in. Kat kept walking her long, steady pace, rolling her eyes and huffing a small laugh. "Those guys…" She checked her phone as it buzzed. 

**[4:12] _Trevor:_** _oh god they're here. Help me._

The white truck parked on the side of the road at the entrance of Kat's very long driveway stood out from the shadows of the trees surrounding the small cul-de-sac. The driveways belonging to her neighbors were not at all as long as hers. She remembers the day she and Trevor decided to buy a summer cabin almost as if it was yesterday. Spending as much time as she did at the SMA, she agreed with her best friend's decision that it would be nice to spend a weekend or two somewhere else. Even though she loved the military academy with her heart, and cherished it like a child, the school's white walls and perfectly-cut grass and incredible views slowly grew _too_ familiar. After Trevor told her he found a nice property in the capitol–an ironically unpopulated part of the country, they immediately went to check it out.  
He under-exaggerated the sheer size of the place when he said "cabin." The house is practically a mansion. Though rather plain-looking, it was perfect for the two of them at the time. After the year Kat lost her fire powers, she finally moved into the cabin herself and adopted her daughters. 

"Kat, your kids are crazy," Trevor breathed out, laying on his back on the floor. "Crazy, I tell you!"  
"Yeah, I know," She laughed. "What'd they do?"  
"Man, those girls are getting stronger and stronger! I was just standing there, minding my own business while I was texting you, and then Araija jumps on me! Then, Sofie and Aowin soon follow, and those three boys, gods, they just laughed!"  
"Well, those three boys are Collin, Ron, and Quinn, and they laugh at everyone for everything, especially if it involves the girls."  
"What, are they their boyfriends or something?"  
"Pfft, I wouldn't be surprised." Kat stopped. "Wait, Araija hasn't told you about Collin?!"  
"Nope!"  
She groaned. "You're in for an earful later. Say, where did everyone go?"  
He sat up, grunting, and slowly stood. "No idea."  
Kat cleared her throat.  
"What a-"  
She held up a finger, and yelled, "Girls! Come introduce your boyfriends! How rude of you to not talk about your favorite people!"  
Trevor looked at her, confused and slightly horrified. "I thought they-"  
"Just wait," She interrupted with an amused grin. They heard yells of protest and loud stomps suddenly coming from upstairs. She started laughing when Araija came tumbling down the stairs quickly, all while yelling things about her and Collin just "being friends." Sofie was doing pretty much the same thing, except yelling out how much she agrees with her sister. Aowin and Quinn and the other boys nonchalantly walked down the stairs.  
"We're. Not. Dating!" Araija fumed, embarrassed. Collin hid behind Quinn, bright red, his face in his hands. "I've told you so many times, Kat! Why don't you listen to me?!"  
"I'm kidding, sheesh!" Kat grinned at her and ruffled her hair. "I know that already. I called you guys down to introduce the boys to Trevor since he hasn't met them before."  
"Oh," Sofie said. "But still! How dare you!"  
"Ah, whatever. Introduce yuh-selves to him," Kat finished and effortlessly carried her heavy bags up to her room.

Trevor stood silently, patiently waiting for someone to say something.  
No one did.  
He sighed and introduced himself. "Good afternoon, boys. My name is Trevor Vann. You may know of me, I am the second founder of the SMA, as well as Kat's best friend. I don't know if she talks about me much at all."  
"Oh, yeah! I remember her talking about you a couple times!" Ron exclaimed. "Yeah, she uh, I think she called you short. Yeah, she was describing how you are like a little kid-"   
"Really, now?"  
"Yah!"  
He grunted, amused. "I'll remember that. Thanks, kiddo. So, what's your name?"  
"Oh! Sorry, I'm Ron."  
"Pleasure to meet you." They shook hands. "And the others?"  
"Collin. Hi," The blonde said and held his hand out timidly.  
"Don't be a wuss, Collin! He's harmless! He's like a gigantic teddy bear, seriously!" Araija pushed his shoulder lightly. Trevor narrowed his eyes dangerously at her, an evident glint of amusement disregarding all annoyance in the look. Collin chuckled and shook his hand more firmly at the comment.  
Quinn stepped away from Aowin and shook hands with the older, dark-skinned man. "I'm Quinn. It's nice to finally meet you. Aowin's told me a lot about you."  
Trevor smiled at him. "You've got a good grip, kid. Good things, I hope?"  
"Oh, yeah. I don't think there's anything bad to talk about!" Aowin beamed. She hugged him quickly and tightly and joined her sisters.

"So, what're you here for, anyway?" Kat inquired. She sat on the couch with him, eating a bowl of cereal. "Your phone call earlier today was very… vague."  
"Ah, yes. I heard of this very large pumpkin patch almost exactly half-way from here to the SMA, and I was wondering if you and the girls would like to go there and choose some pumpkins to carve? I must admit, I did not expect extra company, but as they say, 'the more the merrier!' As you already know, the truck will fit around eight, so we've still got plenty of room."  
She twisted her mouth into a thoughtful-looking frown complete with raised eyebrows. "I like that! There aren't many pumpkin farmers nearby. Who'd you hear this from?'  
He grinned. "Funny story, actually. One of the cadets showed me one of these 'memes' and it involved a pumpkin, and he asked for permission to make whatever it was. To do that, he had to go buy pumpkins. So, I went with him because I'm curious, and long story short, we can go get pumpkins."  
"So it's like, huge?"  
"Yup. There's a lot of pumpkins. Varying in size, too. They've got it all organized, too."  
"Let's go ask the kids if they're done with homework."  
"M'kay." 

The two adults knocked on the girls' bedroom doors and asked them about going to get the pumpkins. Everyone was ecstatic. "We can wait to go until you're done with homework, though," Trevor said.  
"I need a break already, honestly," Ron breathed.  
"Same here," Sofie agreed and dropped her notebooks on the floor.  
"I WANT TO CARVE A PUMPKIN AND SIT INSIDE OF IT!" Araija screeched from her room.  
"Shut _up,_ Araija!" Collin laughed out.  
"Looks like we're going, Kat!" Trevor said.  
"It appears so," She mumbled and pulled on her coat. "You gonna go get the car ready?"  
"Yup!"  
"Gee, thanks for leaving the kids with me!" Kat playfully complained as he began the short journey to the end of the driveway. 

 

Kat and Trevor were tortured by their horrible singing, pointless conversations, terrible jokes, and obnoxious laughter. Trevor threatened (though not being serious at all) to "turn this car around if you make one more bad joke!" This only sent the young teenagers into fits of uncontrollable, contagious, boisterous laughter that lasted for what seemed an eternity. Things only got worse when Araija and Sofie started to get hyper.  
They were wiggling around in their seats more, bothering Ron and Collin more than usual. The boys erupted with loud screeches and playful hits at the girls behind them as they blew on their necks and ears and pinched and bothered them.  
"I'm gonna freeze them," Kat hissed out through laughter and opened her window, letting in a delicious, ice-cold breeze on the group of kids behind her.  
"Hey!" They all cried out. "Close it!"  
"It's so cold!"  
"Dude, I'm freezing!"  
"My ears hurt already!"  
"Ah, gods! I'm dying!"  
Kat and Trevor laughed until their eyes were pricking with tears. The window was closed not long after because it truly chilled down the truck quite a bit. "That's what you get for being loud and annoying!" Trevor said.  
It got oddly silent.  
"Uh-oh," Kat looked behind her, worried that the kids were conspiring against them. She was right.  
The teens erupted back into pure noise purposefully to annoy them.

Trevor turned into a small gravelly parking lot and turned off the ignition of the car. "We are here!"  
"Finally!" Everyone said in unison.  
"Woah!" Kat laughed. "Wicked awesome, guys!" She slammed the car door shut and popped her back.  
"This pace is huge!" Araija gasped, in awe, and excitedly ran to the large rows of pumpkins organized by size.  
"Look at this tiny pumpkin!" Ron cooed and picked it up, laughing.  
"Welcome to Savaclorn's largest pumpkin patch!" An old man with a gray beard exclaimed happily. "Any particular size you're looking for?" He walked up to Kat and Trevor.  
"Ah, thank you, and no. We're just taking the kids to choose some pumpkins," Kat answered with a smile.  
"All six of 'em? Wowza! You've got a lot on your hands!"  
"Eh?! Oh! No! Not the boys. No, only the three girls." Trevor laughed, embarrassed.  
Kat felt herself blush a little, too. "Adopted," She added.  
"We're not married."  
"Oh, shame," The old man said. "Seems you two got it pretty well under control, then! I'll see to it the kiddos get pumpkins!"  
The two chuckled and made their way into the pumpkin patch as well. Kat was in awe at the abundance of pumpkins. I know what I'm going to do tonight. She grinned. Make brochures for this place. He needs more business. It's already well into October, and so few have bought any. These kids will die for them! 

Araija jumped onto one of the largest pumpkins and started dancing on it while Collin and Sofie recorded her. They laughed when Trevor yelled at her and posted them. Quinn and Aowin linked their fingers together as they walked through the seemingly endless aisles of pumpkins. They're trying to keep their relationship a secret until they're ready to tell everyone. As of late, it's proven tough to do so. With the recent drama between Collin and Araija, the two were constantly asked questions and confronted since they are both close with them. That meant they weren't able to get the usual time to spend alone together.  
Thankfully, though, no one has noticed anything. 

"Five minutes, guys! You surely have chosen a pumpkin by now!" Kat hollered. She and Trevor found the perfect pumpkin to carve together. One side would be a frowny face, and the other side a happy face. It's stupid, and they love it.  
The kids all grabbed the pumpkins they wanted, all of them reasonable in size thankfully, and hurried over to the register. The old man collected the cash with a large smile. He was radiating happiness, more than excited to have gotten business. "Thank you! Come again soon! You are always welcome here!" 

Trevor dropped the boys off at their houses, insisting that Kat will keep the pumpkins for them, and saying goodnight.  
He's so glad he went with that cadet.


	15. Scarecrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annabeth gets called a scarecrow.  
> The teens do some homework until Kat gets home.   
> Araija is rejected hot chocolate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so hyped for what's coming up soon!  
> Tomorrow's chapter will be a "part two" of today's since that makes the most sense.  
> You'll see what I mean, or you'll figure it out.

"Dude, did you guys see that scarecrow Mister and Mrs. Yarax have up on one of their trees?" Ron asked everyone when they got inside Kat's house. The group of teens looked at him curiously.  
"Nope," Araija said and threw her backpack on the floor by the formal dining table.  
"Yeah, I think I saw that. The tall one, right?" Collin clarified. "Black face, straw hands…"  
"That's the one!"  
"What about it?" Aowin asked.  
"Oh, I was just making a comment, really! I've never seen such a huge scarecrow before."  
"Annabeth is a huge scarecrow!" Sofie cried out from the table.  
"Who?" Trevor asked from the couch.  
They ignored him on accident. "Yeah! And she talks like a crow, too!" Araija agreed and laughed maniacally. The rest of the group laughed along with her. None of them like Annabeth. She has done something to each of them. Those things include snide comments about their appearances or projects.  
"Who is Annabeth? And where's my 'good afternoon, Trevor?!'" The dark-skinned man asked with false disappointment as he jumped up from the couch. He smiled happily at the group with his arms wide, expecting a hug from one of them.  
"Oh hey!" Araija smiled and jump-hugged him per usual.  
"Her hair is made of straw," Collin stated dryly to no one in particular. "She made me braid it at one point."  
Araija gagged loudly, pulling away from the hug. "Don't touch me ever again!"  
He started fake sobbing. "Woe is me! For what sin has been fo-"  
"Shut up, Collin! You sound like an idiot!" Sofie pulled out her homework and set it on the table. Everyone else went to join her and Araija to start preparing for a long afternoon of stress, panic, and rage.  
"Y'all are crazy! Who's this Annabeth girl, anyway? She a friend of yours or something?" Trevor asked.  
Araija, Sofie, and Ron all sputtered into rude laughter. Araija laughed the loudest. Her face an angry red, veins popping on the side of her neck, nothing but pure hatred showed from those laughs. "Oh, we are _far_ from friends, Trevor!"  
"Gods, she's the worst!" Aowin whined. "She mocked me the other day for being nice to someone!"  
"She what?" Quinn fumed.  
"Mocked me."  
He frowned and crossed his arms. "Why does she have to be such a brat?" He rolled his eyes. "She's worse than Araija."  
"Aw, thank you!" She grinned at him and plopped down in her seat.  
Trevor laughed at that, shaking his head. "So, what do we have for homework? I'm pretty sure my rusty old brain could help if you need?" He stood next to Ron and looked down at their papers.  
"Geometry."  
"Algebra."  
"English and history."  
"Spanish, and a bunch of other stuff."  
He made a panicked look. "I can help with English, history, and Spanish, but uh, math is not my strongest point." He sucked in a breath. "Wait, which history are we talking about?"  
"What do you mean?" Collin inquired, looking up from his binder.  
"Are we talking about Savaclorn history, Xelenyr history, Earth's history?"  
"Wait. Earth?" Sofie gasped curiously.  
He hummed, nodding. "You'll probably take that in further years of schooling. Maybe even at Cloud?  
"Probably," She said lightly and flipped through some notebook pages.  
"Savaclorn history," Quinn answered. "We've all got it.  
"Ah, I see. Need my help with that?"  
"Nah, we've got our readings here," Ron held up the paper as he spoke.  
"M'kay, then. I'll uh, leave you kids to it, then?"  
"Yup!" They said.  
"Alright. Holler if ya need! I'm at the TV, working on my own things as well." 

They passed the long hour together, waiting for Kat to return from teaching. Trevor popped up a gigantic bowl of popcorn because he was hungry, and thought they needed a short break and a snack. During that break, Trevor learned a lot about the inner-workings of the young students' "social hierarchy," and how Araija is nearly at the top. Needless to say, he was fairly impressed at how she, just a small little thing, managed to terrify half her grade and nearly all the students younger than her. _I wonder if Kat knows about this? Maybe she's still as oblivious to these things as she used to be._ He nearly started laughing when Kat burst in through the door, crying out, "I have returned! What'd I miss?"  
"Nothing." The teens answered, monotone.  
She stopped in the middle of the room and stood there awkwardly. "What, no 'welcome home, Kat?!'" She let out a short whine and jutted her arms out, defeated. "Aw, you guys are no fun!" She unloaded her bags after taking her coat and shoes off at the coffee table on the left side of the house. "Y'all want a fire?" 

Quinn paused his working, watching as everyone else except Aowin left to go over to her. They were loudly talking about lighting up both fireplaces and eating s'mores and drinking hot chocolate (Kat said Araija could not have any until next time due to aforementioned circumstances) and… _carving pumpkins._ That was the purpose of the journey to the pumpkin patch the other day. He leaned close to Aowin and commented politely, "Have you ever noticed how similar Kat and Trevor are?"  
She looked over at him, a wildly confused look plastered across her face. "How did you even come up with that? I mean, you're not wrong, but… you've only known him for like, a day!"  
"Their body language and way of talking is somewhat identical." He brushed her cheek gently with the back of his hand and stood up. "Let's go," He smiled softly at her and strode to the fireplace everyone huddled around, leaving an absolutely confused, stunned, and flustered Aowin behind.  
She trailed behind him not long after. "Sis, what do you think about double-decker s'mores?" Araija asked her.  
"What?"  
"Double-decker s'mores! It's like, two s'mores on one. Three crackers, two marshmallows, and like, four pieces of chocolate."  
"Sounds delicious! I'd love one!"  
"Oh-ho-ho, no can do, kiddo! I did not offer double-decker s'mores, Araija. I simply said, 'imagine if…'" Kat corrected her. "Gods know what that would do to you! You already bounce off the walls as is, and with that? Nuh-uh. I ain't gonna deal with it!"  
"Ditto on that, man," Trevor grumbled tiredly.  
"Well, we still are going to have s'mores, right?" Collin asked.  
"Of course!" She laughed. "S'mores are an essential to fire!"  
"Yesssss!" Ron and Sofie hissed out victoriously. "There's something about your fireplace that makes these s'mores just–mmh! Delicious!" He exclaimed.  
"Why thank you. It's the latest model of fire! Wood-burning!" She and the others chuckled at that.  
They fell into a peaceful, warm, loving silence. Collin settled onto a couch next to Kat, who is practically his second mother and Araija. The black-haired girl laid all her weight against him shamelessly, which caused him to squish against Kat somewhat uncomfortably. Her arm moved to wrap around both him and Araija comfortingly as she sighed. "So, you guys got much homework left? No s'mores or pumpkins until you're done, yeah?"  
"Yah, uh, I'm pretty much finished," Sofie said. She lay on her back with her legs kicking back and forth over the back of the couch.  
"Still got some left to do," Collin said.  
"Same," The others agreed.  
Trevor groaned as his phone dinged a couple times. "While you guys go do that, Kat, I need to get your permission for a few things regarding the SMA."  
"Alright. Seeya whenever you're done, guys!"


	16. Jack-o-Lanterns (Day 15 pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is technically a continuation of day 15: Scarecrow.  
> Everyone carves a pumpkin and has a s'more.

Finally, the six teenagers finished their homework. Per usual, Araija was the first to let Kat and Trevor know. She let out a loud "Hooray, we're done!" and proceeded to bounce around the first floor, whooping and cheering in her own little world.  
"You guys ready to carve some pumpkins?" Kat asked while setting the pumpkins on the floor near them. "Hey, Trevor, grab me some of that old newspaper while you're at it!"  
"Yes, ma'am!" He set the two pumpkins he was carrying down on the floor and grabbed a large stack from the recycling bucket. He plopped it on the floor and began to set down two layers of it on the floor to act as a barrier on the wood and carpet. "Here ya go."  
"Thanks," Kat moved the pumpkins onto the large square of newspaper and looked up. "Where'd the kids go?"  
"They went to get the carving tools."  
"All six of them together at once?" She widened her eyes with weirded-out shock. "Truly inseparable," She muttered out.  
Trevor smiled at her and stood up, popping his back. "Get ready for a couple hours of sheer torture on our old bones," He teased.  
"Pfft, no doubt. You guys done yet?" 

"Yeah! We just- Araija, look out!" Aowin gasped, and then there was a loud crash followed by laughter.  
Worried, Trevor and Kat sprinted upstairs and forced their way into the kitchen. "Everyone alright? What happened?"  
Araija was laying on the floor next to a fallen stool, some metal bowls, spoons, and the large bag full of the tools used for caving. She was rolling around, laughing. "She fell off the stool," Quinn said with an obvious tone.  
"Araija, you alright? Clumsy kid!" Trevor knelt down and pulled her up.  
"Yeah, yeah, I'm good! Thanks! I just fell, not that far, really!" She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye as she calmed down from laughing so hard. Sofie was snickering from afar while mixing a mug full of hot chocolate for herself.  
"…Alright," Kat said, still concerned. She was more disappointed in the others for not doing anything about it or rushing to check on her first thing. _I suppose it's just me being protective…_ She sighed and ruffled the young girl's hair and ushered her downstairs. Trevor was helping with picking up the fallen items and bringing them downstairs.  
"Sofie got some hot chocolate. Can I get some?" Collin asked him.  
"Uh… If it's not too much of a bother, I'd rather you wait until we're done carving just in case you knock it over." He eyed Sofie. "You better not spill that thing, Sof."  
"Yeah, whatever. I won't," She said nonchalantly and strode out of the kitchen. Aowin and Quinn huffed out laughs while taking down the ingredients and plates–carefully–for the s'mores everyone will be having later. Trevor took the bowls and tools downstairs and began setting them out. Three bowls for everyone to share, a few knives, spoons, pokers, and papers with designs on them.  
"Hey, Kat?" Ron asked.  
"Yes?"  
"Are you going to make those pumpkin seeds again?"  
"You want me to?"  
"YES!" Literally everyone in the living room–except Kat, of course–demanded in synchrony.  
"Wait why are we doing it here?" Araija asked innocently.  
"Because it's cold everywhere else, and the kitchen isn't blasted big enough," Kat answered with a laugh.  
"True, true." She trailed off and knelt down next to Collin. "I'm gonna make the troll face."  
He snorted loudly and started coughing. "Really?! Make it a scarecrow, too!"  
"I could make Annabeth? She's got plenty of pictures posted I can use for reference."  
Ron and Sofie started laughing along with them. "Good idea! Wait, can I do that, Araija?"  
"Yeah, Sof. I still really want to make the troll face. What about you, guys?"  
"I'm going to make my cat Night Violet!"  
"Cool, I think I'll make a sun," Ron said. "Maybe. I dunno."  
"What are you guys gonna make?" Araija asked Aowin and Quinn.  
"Oh, I'll make… a… spider… web… yeah. I'll do that," Aowin said slowly, thinking.  
"And you, Quinn?" Kat asked while plopping down onto the floor with an "Oof!"  
"Um, I dunno…" He said quietly. "A rose? Maybe? I don't know."  
"Ooh, I like that," She said with a smile. 

Trevor sat down next to Kat and waited with her for everyone to get ready as they pulled up reference images on their phones. The two adults didn't quite think about how their carving process would go. "This will be difficult for us," Trevor grumbled. "I told you we should've bought them separately!"  
"Well, I didn't think it through, okay!" She pursed her lips and grabbed hold of the paper with a smiley face on it. "Everyone ready?"  
"Yeah! Can I have a poker?"  
"I need a Sharpie. Thanks."  
"Give me the knife, someone!" 

The group fell into comfortable silence and momentary comments. Everyone absorbed in their own work, intricately cutting, precisely drawing; creating. Araija was the second-quietest to Quinn. He doesn't talk much. Or smile much. Or show emotions that often. In fact, he kind of "vanishes" from the group sometimes. It's not like they're ignoring him, it's simply that he's so quiet and never bothers to speak up for himself. Aowin usually has to convince him, though. The two of them were in their own little world sharing soft words and compliments, encouraging and improving.  
It is the complete opposite case for Sofie and Ron, who were laughing at each others' work. Playfully insulting each others' artistic abilities and comparing their pieces to generally ugly things they resemble.  
Collin joined their playful banter occasionally, shooting in a comment that usually roused a wave of laughter from everyone, and, of course, attacks thrown at his own pumpkin.  
Araija remained relatively silent the whole time. The only times she spoke up was when she asked for their feedback on her carving of the troll face meme. Somehow, she managed to carve it, despite how truly difficult the pattern is to carve in the first place. The intricacy of the pattern does explain her uncharacteristic silence, though.  
Kat and Trevor talked together and with the others and went to fix the fires when they got low, but otherwise kept their focus on their patterns. When they stood up slowly, they were both grunting and groaning in pain, popping their backs and stretching their muscles loudly. 

"Gods, I'm too old for this," Trevor mumbled when he laid back down on the floor.  
_Wait. If he owns a military academy… shouldn't he be… fit?_ Quinn made a confused face that went unnoticed. _Maybe he's just that old?_ He snorted softly with an amused smirk at that.  
"Me, too." Kat groaned and returned to slouching. "We should've gotten two," She admitted guiltily.  
"Yeah, we should've." He yawned.  
Araija's head snapped up and she stared at him. "You're tired. Let's get s'mores. S'mores wake people up. Sugar. Chocolate. S'mores. Can we make them yet?"  
"Look at the fire," Kat mumbled. "You'll singe the marshmallow until it's a freakin' shrub, kid."  
"I'll just make Collin do it. He's a marshmallow roasting prodigy!"  
He blushed at that and smacked her arm gently. "Pfft! Prodigy? Maybe it's because I'm _trying_ to be _delicate_ with it! You know, get the whole thing roasted evenly? It's not that hard."  
"You go ahead and get the stuff for it. No way in hell am I getting up again after that," Trevor said, his tone and demeanor perfectly matching the sad face he was carving on his side of the pumpkin.  
"Alright!" Araija dropped the knife and charged towards the kitchen.  
"Don't forget to wash your hands, young lady!" Kat reminded. 

Everyone roasted a s'more, mindful of the fire's height, and made hot chocolate. Sofie, to everyone's surprise, didn't spill her drink while flailing and goofing around with Ron, and Araija stole small sips from Collin and Trevor's mugs when they weren't looking since she was banned from having hot chocolate.  
Not long after, people finished their designs. Making the final touches, cleaning the inside one last time, and putting the top back on.  
"Hold on, let me get the candles I bought a while ago," Kat said excitedly and quickly stood up to go rummage through a box somewhere. "Aha!" She held up a bag full of small candles. "One for each of us. Perfect!" She opened the bag and dropped it on the floor, letting everyone get one of them before grabbing her own. "So, boys, would you like to bring them home tonight? Trevor will drop you off since he's going back to the SMA, and plus, it's freezing out there."  
Quinn nodded. "Yeah, I'll take mine, thanks."  
"I'll be coming back tomorrow afternoon, so I'll leave it here," Collin said. Araija perked up at that.  
"Same, probably. I'll bring mine, though." Ron pocketed the small candle.  
"Alrighty then. Get your coats on, everyone! Prepare to freeze out there!" Trevor declared. 

Kat picked up the shared pumpkin and followed the kids outside, down the long driveway, and stopped at the end.  
"Ooh, I'm putting mine here. Aowin, yours would look good there!"  
"Quinn, you are truly an artist! You should put them in flowers when you get home," Ron said.  
"Thanks," He laughed. "I like your sun."  
"Ayy! Hey, Sof! Quinn knows it's a sun!"  
"Still looks demented!" She teased right back. 

"Fire comin' through! Step away from Trevor everyone!" Kat warned. He held up a long lighter and lit up the five candles inside their respective pumpkins. "Woot! Now would ya look at that!" She smiled at the sight giddily. "Ooh! Here, wait, pose by your pumpkin if you can! Quinn, Ron, get in the picture!" She exclaimed and held up her phone. She took the picture, the flash blinding everyone, and grinned happily. "Perfect!"  
"Okay, boys, let's go! I can't have you getting sick, now!" Trevor unlocked the truck that was already running to warm up.  
The three said goodbye to everyone quickly and hopped in the truck.  
"Seeya, Kat! Don't forget to go to the festival tomorrow! Reps for the SMA are going! Be sure to give 'em a visit! Oh, also, get that document to me ASAP!" Trevor called out from the window and drove away.  
"Let's get inside. C'mon, girls!" They all ran back to the house and warmed up by the fire for the rest of the evening.

Night Violet's purple eyes glowed faintly in the dark as she padded back onto Collin's bed, her black tail flicking with irritation. Progress was slow with Araija. _It seems like we need to work some magic, now._


	17. Caramel Apples

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> #Cara (the ship name for Collin and Araija) buys some _#Cara_ mel apples.  
> Annabeth is somewhat helpful for once. She isn't being very nice from a distance, though.  
> Leona, a neighbor that the group of six teenagers love returns from a business trip.

"Bruh what the _heck!_ " Araija screeched out, frustrated, and closed her locker aggressively. Taylor and Araija both wanted to get to the yearly fall festival early so they don't have to wait in line for food or games or push their way through the crowd. Collin had extra work to do, so he is staying back with Kat and a couple of the others in their usual family-like group from yesterday.  
"What! Everyone thinks that, now! Don't get mad at me!" Taylor said while holding her arms up defensively.  
"Well you're right here, so I might as well!" She fumed. Her cheeks were pink from being flustered. "Why does everyone think we're a couple suddenly?! It's not like we behave like the couples at our school!"  
Taylor ran her fingers through her hair and clicked her tongue. "Mhm, yeah, keep believing that. It's kind of hard to not assume when you guys got your fingers all up and tangled together, with your arms always around each other... Tell me that's not what couples here do."  
Araija rolled her eyes and sighed. Gods, I wish. "Shut up, Taylor! It's not wrong for a guy and a girl to be best friends!"  
"And to act like a couple? Nuh-uh, missy!" She slapped a fist into the palm of her hand and exclaimed, "That's it! I know what I'll do!"  
"What's that, now?" The black haired girl asked with a dangerous edge to her voice.  
"I'll set you guys up! Literally everyone ships you, pretty much," Taylor sang with a grin on her face.  
"Araija!" Aowin, her sister, called from behind. The two girls stopped and waited for her. "Araija, hi!"  
"Hey, sis!" Araija greeted excitedly. "I thought you were staying back?"  
"I changed my mind," She laughed sheepishly. "It's alright that I'm here?"  
"Of course it is!" Taylor answered and slung her arms around their shoulders. "Where will we bring our stuff? I really don't want to walk home and then come back again."  
"I'm pretty sure the owner of the café in town would let us leave our stuff in the back or something," Aowin offered. "Araija, Collin, Quinn, and I all go there together quite often."  
"So, you guys have double dates and stuff?" The green-eyed brunette teased.  
"Shut up! We're not dating them!" Aowin and Araija hollered defensively at the same time.  
She sighed as they came closer to town. "Fine, whatever. Let's go, then!"

Baristas looked at the three girls who came inside with warm smiles. "Afternoon, Araija, Aowin! Who is this?"  
"My name is Taylor!" She said happily. "Hey, I got a quick question."  
"Alright, shoot!"  
"We're going to the festival, and we were wondering if we could leave our school stuff in the back or something?"  
They all shrugged. "I suppose. Here, I'll show ya." Taylor looked back at the other girls with a grin and wiggled her eyebrows excitedly. She followed the barista into a small office where their own stuff was neatly lined up against the wall. "You ladies can put it here. We'll be open until the festival is over. Want anything before you go?"  
"No, thanks. We're going to be snacking on a bunch'a different foods, not sure if any of them will taste good with coffee." Aowin gently set her bag down next to Taylor's and waited for Araija, who threw her backpack down and started wrestling with the shoulder strap of her binder, trying desperately to get it unstuck from her coat. She was grumbling angrily and flailing her arms around until it finally slipped over her head. Aowin did her best not to laugh at her. 

The girls exited the café and walked down the small sidewalk that led to the main street. Already, they could see a decent-sized crowd of people. White tents that shielded merchants from the forces of nature was a new addition to the festival, they noticed. The same food trucks and restaurants were open again, much to their delight.  
"We're getting funnel cakes first, guys!" Aowin reminded. "First and last."  
"Good plan!" Taylor pulled out a shiny silver coin and handed it to the cashier. "Three funnel cakes, please!"  
"Alright, kid!" He repeated the order back to the chefs and handed Taylor the change. "Three o'four in return, milady! Please wait on the left."  
"I could've bought mine!" Aowin shook Taylor's shoulder. "Let me pay you back!"  
"Nah, I'm feeling generous today."  
She just shook her head accepted it with a smile and looked around, observing the activities. Just like last year, there was a wooden sign advertising a gigantic corn maze a couple blocks from the main area of the festival, a raffle box, a short running race, and a pillowcase-jumping race track in sight. Down the road, there should be the "Horses of Far County Road" stable set up. For a small price, anyone can get a ride on one of the horses. It's more popular with children than adults and teenagers, but she and Araija and Sofie always go and force the boys to take pictures for them.  
Aowin was pulled from her trance when her funnel cake was shoved into her hands. "Quickly, WinWin!" Araija screeched and grabbed her own. "Ah, yum!" She licked her lips and started to pick it apart.  
"Thank you, Taylor."  
"Yeah, no problem! Say, when are the others gonna get here? The rest of your gang?"  
She shrugged. "Whenever Kat's done working, I suppose. I'm sure they'll return home first and then come."  
"Hopefully soon, though!"  
"Yeah," She agreed with a small laugh. 

The girls found a bench to sit on underneath a lovely red maple tree to eat in peace. Araija and Taylor were babbling on about whatever it is they usually do. _Are Quinn and I that obvious?_ Aowin thought. _Surely we aren't. We don't behave like Araija and Collin, that's for sure. Taylor was just teasing… I hope._ She hummed at the delicious taste of her funnel cake. "How wonderful it is to have one of these funnel cakes again after such a long time," She stated happily when their conversation died down.  
"Agreed." Taylor collected some more powdered sugar onto the piece she was going to eat.  
"We _could_ make it at home…" Araija started, "But, it's yummier at this time of the year. We make so many s'mores anyway. Wait, no, actually, we have recently been making many s'mores. Yeah, that's better."  
The others chuckled at her rambling but otherwise fell into a comfortable silence. They smiled as young children ran past them screaming joyfully, playing with their siblings, and laughing and playing games. They recognized a few of their fellow peers from school and said hello when they stopped to chat for a while. Araija kept asking if they saw Collin walking back yet, and they said no. Disappointed, she pulled out her phone and started spam-texting him. 

**[3:15] _Me:_** _dude why aren't you here yet_  
**[3:15] _Me:_** _come on I'm bored_  
**[3:15] _Me:_** _BRUH HURRY UP PLEASEEEEE IM DYYINNG OUT HEREREEE_

Collin pulled out his phone, unsurprised to see Araija spamming his messages. "Oh man, wow," He laughed out as the messages kept coming.  
"Hm?" Kat questioned from her desk.  
"Araija's really bored, or so she says. She keeps spamming me."  
She snorted. "You're all done with your work, right?"  
"Yeah, kinda. I guess I could go."  
"Don't you find it annoying, though?" Annabeth asked as she turned around in her desk.  
"Find what annoying?"  
"Araija, of course! With how much she blows up your phone? You can just ignore them by turning off your notifications," She said with an obvious tone. "Don't you want to get your work done first?"  
He sighed slowly and met eyes with Kat momentarily who held a look that said: "What was that about Araija?" He mustered the most polite closed-smile he could force and nodded his head. "Yeah, but I have hours left to do the rest of it, which is very little."  
A soft knocking on the door drew his attention away from Annabeth. Quinn stood in the doorway and opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it. "Oh, hey, Quinn," Collin greeted with a genuine smile. "You going now?"  
"Um, yeah. I was wondering if you'd want to join me? Araija spam-texted me saying she and Aowin are lonely and that I need to drag you with me."  
He nodded quickly and picked up his bags after shoving everything else in it. "I'll see ya later, Kat!"  
"Yup, stay safe, guys! I'll be there after four."  
Annabeth jumped up from her seat. "Wait, I'm coming with you." She swung her backpack over her shoulder and walked after them. Reluctantly, the two boys stood and waited for her. 

"I'm pretty sure they already got funnel cakes," Quinn murmured thoughtfully. "I know they die for them every year."  
"Yeah," Collin laughed. "I forgot to bring cash with me… dang it."  
"Same. I don't think Aowin forgot. She's so good with remembering things like this."  
"I agree, and I'm pretty sure there's going to be no more funnel cake left for us by the time we meet up with them," Collin sighed and checked his phone. He typed a quick message to Araija and Aowin, saying that they're on their way.  
Annabeth pulled out four copper coins from her pockets and poked them on the shoulder. "I have some. Here." She dropped two coins into each of their hands with a soft smile. "I'm meeting up with Taylor later, and I know she always brings way too much, so take them." Absolutely shocked by her generosity, the two boys could only open and close their mouths, pondering what to say.  
"Really?" Collin asked finally, his eyebrows raised in surprise.  
"Really. Get a funnel cake or something. I know the food here isn't expensive."  
"Oh, thanks, then…" 

The three tensely finished their walk and joined the crowd.  
"Collin, wait." Annabeth gripped his shoulder tightly. He sighed and looked back at her questioningly. "Sorry for all that drama with Araija… I um… I just got a bit jealous," She admitted honestly.  
"Jealous of… who?" He asked slowly, complete with a look of curious suspicion. Eyebrows furrowed, eyes squinted, mouth tilted into a small frown.  
"Both of you."  
Quinn was long gone, on a mission for finding Aowin.  
"Why?"  
She chuckled sadly. "You both are so close, friendly, loyal, trustworthy. It's those things that people envy, and for me, um… I’m jealous of that." He stood there awkwardly, unsure of what to say to that unsettling confession. "I want someone to be…. There for me, you know?" He nodded, choosing the safety of silence to pose as thoughtfulness.  
Collin looked around and eventually saw Araija. He gasped excitedly and then turned to face Annabeth again. "Hey, I'm gonna go, now. And um, thanks for telling me, I guess."  
She nodded, met eyes with Araija, glared, and then leaned up and kissed the blonde on the cheek. "Have fun," She remarked with a sly tone and bounded off.  
He blushed red with embarrassment and slowly, shamefully, looked in Araija's direction. She was turned away, facing Quinn and Aowin. _I hope she didn't see that._ He took a deep breath and exhaled as he walked to the short, black-haired girl. "Hey, Araija!" He said as innocently as he could.  
"Hey! You're finally here! I waited centuries for you!" She joked. The comment made his heart flutter more than it should have. "What took you so long?"  
He laughed awkwardly. "Well, uh, I had a concept check to retake, plus I wanted to get some work done before I came here."  
She made an understanding noise. "Oh, you still have your stuff on. We dropped it off at the café."  
"They let you do that?" He asked, surprised.  
"Yeah. They were cool with it." She gripped his wrist tightly and sped up. There was definitely something off about how she was holding him. Usually, it's more gentle rather than squeezing the life out of his hand.  
"Please have mercy on my wrist, Ara, owowowowow-"  
"Oh! Sorry!" She dropped his wrist and bit her lip shyly as she opened the door for him.  
"Hey there, guys! You here to drop off your stuff?" The barista from earlier asked.  
"Yep! Where…?" He followed the friendly barista to the back and dropped his backpack next to Araija's. "Ready to go?"  
She nodded enthusiastically and grasped his hand this time. "Sorry, I ate the funnel cake already. I was planning on saving some for you, but I was impatient. I forgot to bring cash, by the way. Sorry."  
"No, no. Um, Annabeth actually gave me some on the walk. Quinn and I were hoping for a share of the funnel cakes and realized we forgot some, and she gave us two coppers."  
"Really?!" She screeched out. "That selfish blonde actually did something nice for once? Wow."  
"Yeah… I mean, we can get another one and share it?"  
"Oof, if I have another one I think I'll get sick."  
"Oh, well um…"  
"Don't you like caramel apples?"  
"I do, actually."  
"It's only one copper each for two… you wanna go get one now?"  
"Are you hungry enough to eat one?"  
"I'm always ready to eat food, Collin."  
"Alright, let's go, then! It's in the same spot as last year, right?"  
"Yup!"

Araija and Collin marched right up to the food truck that sold said apples and purchased two. They posted pictures of themselves online before eating the sweet and messy food. As they munched on the sweet delicacy, they watched the people inside the truck with awe as they dipped the apples skillfully into the caramel without making a mess. Its deliciously sweet aroma filled the air and swirled around them and caught in the breeze and flew to the other side of the main street and farther down the dirt road.  
The two walked together hand-in-hand, observing the new addition to the festival: merchants under bright white tents. It must be this new feature that gathered more people than the previous years, they assumed.  
Some time passed before Kat finally arrived at the festival. She sent everyone a text: 

**[4:33] _Kat:_** _Hey guys, I'm at the festival. Come find me at the weird clothing booth, the one with all the colors._

"Oh, finally. Wait, why is she at that booth?" Sofie asked. "Well… she is weird like that, so I guess we shouldn't be surprised."  
"True," Aowin said mid-laughter.  
Sofie, Ron, Aowin, and Quinn started to walk towards the booth and ended up running into Araija and Collin. "Hey, guys!" They all greeted. And hugged. And talked about everything they did so far together. They all opted to stay together after going to see what Kat wanted.

It wasn't very hard to find her, either. The tall woman, at least 6'1" stood like a beacon with her vibrant-looking red hair against the brilliant white tent. In front of her, she was talking with a shorter, dirty-blonde-haired woman the group of six unmistakably identified as Leona. They all cried out her name excitedly and ran up to surround her in a large group hug. All of them asked where she went for the couple of weeks she wasn't at home.  
"I was on a business trip to Sykor and WinterHelm. As you already know, I'm an architect. I post my services online and wait for a call. This was a really good deal. The project took a couple of days. Plus, I wanted to explore those countries some more to expand my abilities with different styles."  
"Woah! Sykor?! I've seen pictures of that place and wow! Did you take pictures?!" Araija asked.  
"Of course I did!" Leona laughed joyfully before releasing a great yawn.  
"Alright, guys, let's give Leona the time she needs to relax. Go home, take a bath or something, watch movies," Kat offered.  
"I think that's a good idea," She nodded tiredly. "It's been an exhausting couple weeks."  
"I can't imagine how much energy it sapped from you." Kat smiled at her softly and bid her farewell.  
"Wow! I can't wait to see the pictures and her buildings that she created!" Collin shook his fists excitedly.  
"I know, right? I can't wait either!" Aowin agreed. She leaned into Quinn just a little bit more, but not noticeably so. 

The group of seven returned to walking around the festival, participating in some of the festivities, buying more food, and appreciating everyone's company. As Trevor reminded Kat to do the other night, she went to say hello to cadets from the Communications and International Services sector of the SMA. They had a whole setup of pamphlets, cards, and informational texts set out on a blue cloth-covered table. 

Nighttime darkness more than quickly set over the plains, obscuring everyone's vision and causing people to return home. Merchants started packing up their things, and the group of seven returned to their respective homes. Of course, everyone grabbed their things from the café before they left.  
"Leona's coming over for dinner tonight, by the way," Kat mentioned when she and her daughters passed through the house's main entrance. "Behave yourselves. I know y'all get a bit crazy when she's here sometimes, so try not to send yourselves into a frenzy of energy."


	18. Pecan Pie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Leona comes over for dinner and brings a pecan pie.   
> Sofie is being way too dramatic and ends up scaring everyone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ugh  
> sorry lol

"Hot food coming through! Watch out!" Kat yelled while hurrying down the stairs. She strode over to the table and set two glass pans onto the hot pads laid out on the table for her. Sofie and Aowin followed behind her carrying one single pan each and mirrored her actions with the hot pads. Araija stepped out of their way, holding a large stack of plates topped off with silverware. She already laid out the napkins and glasses, and placed the hot pads out where she thought would be okay places. "Thank you, girls! I'll get drinks ready. Leona should be coming over sometime soon."   
Araija set the stack of plates down and distributed them around the table. Soon enough she placed the silverware down as well. Kat returned from the kitchen with a gallon of milk and a couple different options of soda cradled in the other arm. "What do you want to drink, guys?"   
"I'll take a full glass of milk."   
"Ooh, that soda sounds really good."   
"Yah, I'll take that, too!"   
"Alright. Can you see Leona yet?" The red-haired woman poured everyone their glasses and twisted the caps back on. "Make some noise or something when she arrives." She returned to the kitchen to put the milk away and also to make sure nothing was forgotten. 

"She's here!" Sofie screamed out and yanked the door wide open. A very unsettlingly cold breeze flooded in and caused them all to shudder. "Hi! Leona, hi! Hi! Hi!" She jumped around excitedly.   
"Dude she's brought something! KAT! Leona brought something with her!" Araija yelled out.   
"Let her get inside, girls! Goodness, don't scare her away!" Kat scolded and joined them at the doorway. She waved and smiled as the other woman started to jog closer. 

"Whew, your driveway is longer than I remember!" Leona laughed out. "Good evening, ladies!"   
"What'd you bring?" The young girls asked.   
"Aw, man! I told you not to bring something!" Kat groaned. "Thank you, Leona."  
"I brought some pecan pie for you all."   
Araija sighed dramatically. "Dessert! Such a rare meal in this household!" She directed the comment right at Kat. "Thank you for this wonderful blessing, Leona!"   
"Hey! It's not my fault that I can't _bake_ things!" She frowned and sniffed at her, playfully offended.   
"If you'd trust us with the kitchen, maybe _then_ we'd have dessert more often!" Sofie joined in.   
"I think Araija's had enough accidents in there," Aowin added dryly.   
"How dare you!" The short girl gasped out and poked her sides. They started having a tickle fight. 

Kat rolled her eyes and sighed fondly. Leona shrugged and shook her head with a soft sigh. Both adults were playfully disappointed. "Thank you, Leona. Really," Kat said and took the pie from her.   
"Of course." She hung her coat up and took off her shoes. "Ah, it feels so nice in here." She noticed both fireplaces were alight. "Oh. Both of them? I'm surprised."   
"Well, we've had a lot of s'mores lately. I'm doing it for the girls, mostly," Kat admitted.   
Leona patted her shoulder and gave her a sympathetic look. "It's alright to still feel a longing for them. If it makes you uncomfortable, just tell them. I'm sure the girls would understand. They are old enough to know when things are serious."   
"Yeah, but…"   
A loud thump drew their short conversation to an end. "Ow!" Araija whined out and held her head with a hand. Sofie was rolling around on the floor, crying from laughter. Aowin stood at Araija's side, checking on her.   
"You good, kiddo?" Kat asked.   
"She ran into the wall," Aowin explained, holding back laughter of her own.   
"Oh, my," Leona mused.   
"Yeah, well, try not to next time. We've got dinner to eat! Let us feast!" Kat announced happily and sat down at the end of the table that allowed her to see the door and windows at the entrance. Not that she thinks anything will happen, but it's always a paranoia in the back of her mind that someone might be outside her house plotting an assassination attempt, or watching her and her girls. Being the owner of a military academy put some unsettling burdens on her shoulders. Death threats make up part of those burdens. 

Everyone listened intently to Leona as she recited the events of the previous month being in Sykor and WinterHelm. She described the place she stayed at in WinterHelm as a very gloomy place. There were few parks and nature reserves, and the only signs of plant life she saw were the well-kept gardens in front of important buildings, flower shops, or from windowsills on apartment buildings. "Even the mountains were gray and… well, not necessarily what you'd love to see every day. My view was very nice, I must say that, and I am certainly not complaining about the luxury I had while I was there, but it was just…"   
"Not what you expected?" Sofie finished for her.   
"Yes. I thought it would be more… lively?"   
"That makes sense," Aowin said and made a weird motion with her fork. "What about Sykor?"   
"Oh," She sighed out dreamily. "It was so gorgeous." Again, she said there were very few parks, but, the nighttime sights of the country made it worth the lack of nature. Lights of all different colors lined the skyscrapers all over the country, flashing, flickering, glowing vibrantly in the darkness. Everything was built up, too. There are very few suburbs in the country, and apartments were almost endless. She explained that the country itself was actually split into districts. For example, there's a housing district, a business district, and a schooling district. 

"So, from what I understand, you worked for two different companies during this time?" Kat clarified.   
"Yes. I worked for… oh gosh, I think it was called "Modernist Empire" or something like that, and the second one, which is in Sykor, was "Kalsa." That's it."   
"That's pretty cool," Aowin smiled.   
"Definitely." She paused to take a bite, and then made a noise. Her eyes widened and her eyebrows shot up excitedly. "I even met this wonderful family while I was in Sykor, too! Nate and Lillith, married, and their fifteen-year-old son. I feel so bad, I can't remember his name, but I surely remember his bright teal hair and all the piercings he had."   
"How many piercings did he have?" Araija asked.   
"I think it was five. He explained it all to me, actually," She laughed. "He said, 'I have two here, here, and one on my tongue.'" She pointed to her ears and below her bottom lip.   
"Snakebites, ear piercings, and a tongue stud? Cool," Araija said. "Can I get piercings, Kat?"   
"Nope."   
"Why not?!"   
"Because you're a bit young for putting holes in your body."   
"He's only a year older than us, though!"   
"Different parenting, Araija," Leona reminded. "Also, his parents let him climb rooftops and roam the streets at night if he wants to."   
"What?!" The girls all squawked. "Climb rooftops?!"   
"At night?!"   
"Roam the streets?!"  
"He could _die!_ "   
Leona just laughed. "The kid's pretty strong, I must say."   
Kat finished her meal and asked, "You spent a lot of time with this family. How come?"   
"Ah, yes. Nate is a… manager or a co-owner of Kalsa. The actual owner was off somewhere else for some meetings when I first arrived, and I had no idea where to go. He was so helpful, and I decided to bake some stuff for him and his family to say thanks for his help."   
"Quite an interesting month. I find it amazing how you can make friends because of food," Kat mumbled. 

Everyone ended up finishing their food. Kat almost forced Leona to take some leftovers home after they have dessert. Leona brought over her homemade pecan pie despite being told not to bring anything.   
"I want to eat it now! Can we have some now?" Aowin bounced around in her chair momentarily as she and her sisters eagerly awaited for their answers.   
"Sure, but only one piece. I'll be back." Kat hurried upstairs to go grab a knife. 

"Yum! Thank you, Leona!" Sofie said as she chewed a forkful of the pie.   
"I'm glad you like it," Leona smiled and ate a piece as well.   
Kat was going to say something about how good it tasted but was cut off by a small gasp and a cough from the young blonde. "You okay?" She nodded but stopped to breathe deeply for a moment. Kat furrowed her eyebrows and stared at her, concerned. The others did, too. Sofie started to cough, albeit seeming to be somewhat overdramatic, which made everyone panic.   
"Sofie, what-"   
She started giggling. "Sorry!" She coughed a couple times and stuck her tongue out. Then, she groaned and pretended to faint.   
"What are you doing?" Aowin asked.   
Kat stood up and knelt down beside her. "SofSof?"   
Araija burst into laughter when Sofie did. "I forgot I'm allergic to pecans!" The blonde exclaimed and kept laughing.   
"What?!" Kat yelped. "W-we need to get you to the clinic or something! C'mon!"   
She started to shake her head 'no' almost violently. "No! We don't need to do that! It's not bad at all!"   
"At least you ate only a little bit?" Aowin suggested, trying to make light of the situation.   
"Yeah, and look at how she reacted," Leona said, concerned. "I'm so sorry, I didn't realize-"   
"You didn't know, Leona, and that's okay."   
"You totally made that dramatic, Sof," Araija giggled out.   
"Yeah, I kinda did," Sofie admitted sheepishly.   
"Why would you do that?" Kat asked with a whiny tone and pouted a bit.   
Aowin sighed. "Sof, please _never_ do that again."


	19. Milkshakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annabeth steals the milkshake Collin bought for Araija.  
> Night Violet uses some of her magic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow's chapter will be a part two of today's.

With a cold milkshake in his hand and the other on the floor, Collin sat against the wall that separated him from the warm October breezes outside. A large portion of the Savaclorn wizards stood crowded together, hurrying through all exits of the school and forcing their way to the back fields.  
A last-minute announcement blared through the loudspeakers earlier during the day entailing a show the small group of illusionist students at the school was putting on for the entire school in regards to "spooky season." Not many students in the school know about the small group of illusionists' work. They are told to keep much of what they learn a secret from their peers due to peer pressure, "magical shenanigans," rule-breaking, and minor things like that. 

Though a highly respected class of magic, illusionism is considered to be one of the least-convenient of them all since the spells in this class cannot cause physical harm. Being the only class that can perform alterations visually, but not physically, it is the second-most dangerous class in regards to mental health, especially for young learners.  
Chaos magic outranks illusionism as first. Chaos mages can cause great harm to anyone if they so choose. (Both mentally and physically.) Spells in this class typically alter the wiring of one's brain for a temporary period of time. For example, a spell of theirs causes the victim to feel an insatiable desire to hurt themselves. Their brain mistakes the pain for bouts of dopamine, therefore creating temporary euphoria they cannot control until the spell's effects have worn off and left them in a state of distress and physical suffering. After each spell a chaos mage casts, though, they descend one more step closer into pure madness. It is important for anyone cursed with this class to understand the severity of harm of their magic and how the demise of their sanity is inevitable. 

Collin took small sips of the cool, chocolatey milkshake through his straw and scrolled through his phone mindlessly while waiting for Araija. He bought a milkshake for her so they could get outside quickly. He looked up, trying to see if she was coming yet. What's taking her so long? He sighed impatiently and looked back down at his phone. _Ugh. This is so boring. I can't believe the others ditched me! I thought Quinn would've been nice and stayed with me._  
A loud group of girls walked by him, giggling obnoxiously and just being loud. He forced back a frown when someone sat down next to him. "Hey, Collin," Annabeth greeted coolly.  
He let the straw fall from his lips and glanced over at her. "Hey…"  
"Excited for the show?"  
"Yup." He nodded slowly and pocketed his phone. "You?"  
"Yeah. I've got a friend in the group."  
"Cool."  
She looked down at the paper cup full of Araija's drink. "Oh, whose drink is this?"  
"Araija's."  
"Oh." She picked it up and put the straw to her lips. "Mine now."  
Collin gave her an incredulous look. "What are you doing?! I bought that for _her!_ Not you!"  
She glanced over at him, eyes lidded with mischief. They held an almost knowing look as well. It confused him. "You wouldn't take a girl's drink, now, would you?" She asked with a dangerous ghost of a smirk gracing her lips.  
"No, of course not, but why would you take her drink like that?"  
She shrugged and grinned. It turned mischievous as she looked towards the crowd for a brief moment "See you later." She pinched his cheek and jumped up and walked with the rest of the crowd that was leaving the school. Collin remained frozen in place, absolutely confused, upset, feeling almost violated.  
"The hell was that?!" Araija stormed up to him. "What was that, Collin?!"  
He shook his head and sighed. "I have no clue. Seriously, I'm just as confused and upset as you are." Her jaw clenched tightly at that. "She stole your drink. I bought one for you before she came and freaking stole it! I don't know why, alright?!" Their gazes locked. Araija's eyes were narrowed dangerously while Collin's were wide and pleading, desperate, pained. "You can have mine if you want," He offered.  
The air around them shimmered briefly, and Araija's eyes pulsed purple faintly. Her angry demeanor relaxed noticeably. "Thanks," She said softly. "Sorry I just…"  
"Really hate her?"  
With a soft smile, she chuckled. "Yeah." _It's so much more than that, Collin._  
"Are you ready to go, though?" He handed the girl his cup and slowly rose to his feet.  
She nodded quickly and started to drink it. He followed her out the school doors and into the back courtyard where hundreds of students sat in groups together. In the midst of the crowd was a small wooden stage. "I think we're outside since the arena doesn't fit this many people," Araija noted. He agreed. The arena on the west side of the school's campus was meant more for dueling than for anything else. The back courtyard could fit thousands of people if packed together tightly. The two clumsily made their way through the large crowd of students and sat down in a place farther away from them.  
"I can't wait to see what they've been working on."  
"Same. I kinda want to know how it all works, you know?"  
'Yeah, totally."  
"Wait, doesn't Kat teach the anatomy of magics class? She would probably be able to answer that."  
"No, actually." Araija's face held a look of excitement.  
"Really?"  
"Yeah! It's confusing, kind of. She actually learned more about the physical aspects of magic on our bodies rather than mental or emotional stuff. She's been debating heavily about going back to whatever college she went to and getting a degree in the psychology of magics."  
Collin smiled. "I encourage her, then! I think that's pretty cool. Honestly, I'm into psychology and things like that."  
"Are you, now!"  
He nodded. "Ooh, I think it's starting!

All conversations around them, including their own, came to a halt when Archmage Abigale stepped onto the wooden stage and cleared her throat. She held up the microphone and started speaking, "Good afternoon, students of Savaclorn…"


	20. Haunted Houses (Day 19 pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Continuation of day 19. Same afternoon)  
> The illusionists successfully put many students at unease.   
> Collin and Aowin are genuinely freaked out.   
> Quinn is jumpy and paranoid during and after the show.   
> Ron, Sofie, and Araija absolutely loved it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did not put effort into this chapter lol   
> I'm also going to freak myself out whoops  
> Poltergeist activity (in general) actually makes me uneasy. Google it if you're curious, and I'm not talking about the movie. Just find some home recording someone took and watch it! They give me chills.

_"C'mon, Collin! You're giving mixed signals, here!" Violet reminded angrily. "You do realize that doing nothing about what Annabeth is plotting will get you nowhere, right?"  
Night looked like she put her hands on her hips. "You need to read the Tome of Fellowship. We gave it to you for a reason. Its purpose is not only for self-fulfillment and your relationships alone. Use its knowledge to help everyone else, as well. You will even be able to make peace with those who wronged you…" Her tone suggested something. Something big. Something he can't quite understand yet.   
"You are currently our successor, and you will do as directed. For a start, you will read that book."  
"Don't waste your time and read every single page, gods sake. Skim through it, read it as though you are looking for something to reflect on."   
Violet planted a kiss on his forehead. It sent a pulsing wave of purple magic through his body. "That is for tomorrow. You'll understand what I mean when it happens."   
Collin gasped as he abruptly woke up from another uncomfortable and unpleasant sleep paralysis session with Night and Violet. The goddesses of love. His cat stood on top of the tan-covered tome, her eyes glowing that brilliant purple-pink and slightly illuminating the areas closest to her. She mewled cutely and jumped down from his desk. He rubbed his eyes and buried his face into the palms of his hands. "I don't need the book and its advice or whatever's in there," He groaned out quietly. "What's the point of it all?" He sighed and slowly got out of bed to grab the heavy book. "I probably can figure everything out just fine without the cursed thing."   
A more-than-triggered-sounding noise from Night Violet directed his attention from his own sleep-disoriented irritation. "What? It's true!" He sat down on his bed and leaned over to turn on the lamp. The cat head-butted his arm towards the book. He sighed again and picked it up and flipped to the first page. The title at the top of it read, 'Being A Successor.' He assumed this is where he will get the answers to all of his 'why me?' questions._

With the previous night's events still in his mind and the realization that Violet's forehead kiss caused some sort of magical event to happen, he was startled from thinking too hard about it when the show was coming to a start.   
"Good afternoon, students of Savaclorn!" Archmage Abigale exclaimed. She held her arms wide open and looked around at the crowd. "I'm very glad you all are able to attend." She put her arms down. "As you all know, this is an illusionist show put together by the very group of illusion mages here at our school. Give them a round of applause!" She smiled as the crowd erupted into loud cheers and clapping. "Here they are!" She stepped from the stage and let the small group step onto the stage.   
One by one, they stepped up and introduced themselves. Thirteen people in total throughout all grades at the school so far. Sixth through ninth. Araija and her sisters and Collin and the other boys they all hang out with are part of the first generation of students at the Savaclorn Wizard School. (If I feel like it, I'll write about the very short "history" of the school and the family's history with the school)   
"Thank you, everyone, for coming to this last-minute show! We have been working on this for quite a while, and we hope you enjoy it!" 

The crowd erupted into encouraging cheers as the small group of mages readied their spells. The oldest of them lifted her hands up, letting a black mist fly upwards, and then fall down slowly as it formed a heavy, dark orb of fog around the crowd. Soft murmurs erupted as a red light pierced the darkness, giving off a sinister vibe. The shadows around everyone began swirling around until it came together and formed what looked to be the interior of a house. The light moved upwards and stopped, posing as a house light. The shadows were even darker in the areas the light did not reach.   
Araija and Collin both instinctively scooted closer to each other. "I'm already freaked out," He whispered. He, with a passion, hates anything related to horror. He didn't realize the illusionist show would be a haunted house sort of show. But, since Araija's here with him, he'll suffer through it.   
"I'm excited," She whispered back.   
Everything around them changed to look like a normal house with normal lighting and colors. The concept of the horror was paranoia. The knowing fear that _something_ is in the room with them, that _something_ is watching and lurking in the shadows. Turning on the lights in a very dark hallway and seeing something with glowing eyes hide behind a wall, opening the basement door to see something sickly climbing up the stairs. Head upturned, limbs rotting and bloodied, mouth wide and gaping, eyes gouged out… vile. Shadow figures in the corners of your peripheral vision, looking in mirrors, witnessing poltergeist activity. Truly something that unsettled the crowd.   
Collin did not have fun. He was petrified to a point he never thought possible. His heart hammering against his chest, the hairs on the back of his neck standing up, the sudden urge to hide against something so nothing could jump out at him from behind. Araija loved the show. Of course, she did. She pulled him in close, knowing that he hates it, holding his head against her chest and watching the scenes in front of her unfold with fascination. He plugged his ears and screwed his eyes shut until it was over. 

Araija had to physically move so he would get up. "It's over."   
"Finally, thank the gods," He breathed out.   
"It wasn't that bad, Collin."   
He pursed his lips and shot her a withering look. "You just don't get scared that easily!"   
"True," She laughed and grabbed his hand. "Need a sleepover?"   
"Yes, desperately," He whimpered out and looked at the stage sheepishly. "I'm impressed, though."   
"Me, too! I'll tell Bethany tomorrow that the show was awesome. Let's go get you some comfort foods." She kept a firm grip on his hand as they followed the crowd back to town. Aowin, Sofie, Ron, and Quinn were already at the café when Collin and Araija arrived. Seems like they all had the same plan. Aowin looked to be in the same condition as Collin, and Ron and Quinn were jumpy and paranoid the whole time. Sofie, Araija, and Ron were discussing how much they loved it, completely ignoring the pleas of their friends and siblings to "Stop talking about it for just one moment!"


	21. Wolf Howls (Day 19 pt. 3/Day 20 pt.2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Araija and the gang hear some wolves. Cool.  
> Kat is just done with it all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woot woot~  
> Boy, I sure am good at publishing and writing on time, aren't I?!  
> *disgruntled author noises*
> 
> My Faygo isn't giving me sufficient amounts of energy :(

"So, you guys really liked it, huh?" Kat asked, amused. She had her arms crossed as she was leaning against the doorframe to the kitchen. The three nodded quickly.  
"I loved it the most when everyone started freaking out when they saw the creepy thing crawling up the stairs!"  
One of them gasped. "Omigosh _saaaame!_ Dude, I got chills when the whistling started."  
"Whistling?" The redhead raised an eyebrow.  
"Yeah, there was a super soft, high-pitched whistling that started when we entered the kitchen and living room. It felt like it was behind me!" Ron exclaimed.  
"Yikes." Kat made a weirded-out, creeped-out, and disturbed look all in one. "I must be deaf or somethin' now."  
Sofie clinked her spoon against her mug and said matter-of-factly, "Well, considering how many times you've almost gotten blown up, I'm not surprised."  
"You fire guns and stuff, too, right?" Araija clarified.  
"Yup. There are renades and cannons, too. Helicopters…"  
"Cool," Ron said and nodded his head, looking fairly impressed.  
"Araija! What's taking you so long?!" Collin yelled impatiently from downstairs at the dining table.  
"I'm making hot chocolate! Be patient!" She yelled back fiercely and put in another heaping spoon full of the powdery mix.  
Kat laughed and shook her head. "Alright, I'll be at the fireplace just below if you need me." She made her way down the stairs after picking up a box of papers she set down while she talked with the teens.

 

Ron smacked his lips and hummed with delight. "That was _so_ good!"  
"Right?!" Araija exclaimed, ignoring the fact that crumbs flew out of her mouth and almost everywhere.  
"Ew, Araija!" Sofie cringed and flicked the crumbs back at her.  
"Keep your mouth shut when you eat, Ara! And no talking with food in your mouth, either!" Kat lectured.  
She rolled her eyes and shoved the rest of the s'more, which was a double-decker s'more, in her mouth.  
Everyone got their work done early for once. Kat practically rushed through paperwork for the SMA and relaxed by grading the small assignments for her English classes. (Anatomy of Magics is taught in eleventh and twelfth grade). The group of six teens also rushed through their work. Aowin and Collin weren't able to concentrate since the silence actually made them uncomfortable, though. Those illusionists sure hit their mark. Even Quinn was paranoid and jumpy. 

"Just close your eyes and let your body relax," Araija whined and smacked Collin's arm. "Stop moving around so much!"  
"I can't help but get flashbacks to the show today! I've been mentally scarred!" He whispered harshly and curled into Araija's covers more.  
She sighed and sat up. "It isn't real, Collin. You're going to be fine! Plus, I can take down anything that comes at me just fine!"  
He snorted loudly. "Yeah, sure, you say that now, but just wait until that… whistler… comes at you full speed on its skinny, hoof-like legs." He shivered at the thought and covered his eyes.  
Heavy wind rattled her bedroom windows and made the house creak ever so slightly. Trees and leaves whipped by violently, and a particular chill began to seep in through the house. It caused the windows to grow foggy and ice cold to the touch. "Doesn't Kat have heating or something?"  
"Yeah, she just likes it cold for sleeping. I'm not complaining because she got us all those thermal blankets for Christmas last year," Araija stretched and laid back down, her arms outstretched.  
"Really?!" He gasped. "Get it out! Take it out! It's cold in here!" He rubbed his arms quickly. "Please!"  
"I'll just press the button thing." She leaned off the side of her bed, nearly falling off, as her short arms stretched farther and farther until she heard a soft click. "Warming up in just a little bit."

They both heard a faint and weird… noise… from outside.  
"The whistler is here," Collin whispered. "We're gonna die." He whimpered fearfully.  
Araija gasped, listening again. "No! Dude, it's a wolf!"  
"…Really?" He was pitifully relieved.  
"Yeah! Let's go see if we can find it!" She flew off the bed and slammed open the door. "Oh, hey, guys. You heard it, too?"  
"Yup!" Ron paused in his steps. "Should we even… go out there?"  
"I'll go wake up Kat!" Sofie exclaimed and turned, facing the direction of Kat's door, but was stopped.  
"No! Let's just try to see if we can see it from here," Aowin removed her hand from Sofie's shoulder and wrapped herself in her blanket more tightly. 

They whirled to face her door when a loud thump sounded from it, a single word hissed in San'akaarian (they assumed it was a swear word), and then Kat's tall frame opened her bedroom door slowly. She stepped out and yawned and looked at the six, unimpressed. _"Really?"_ She asked, deadpan. "Not even three?"  
"We think there's a wolf outside! We heard it! Can we go see it?" Araija asked excitedly.  
She shrugged. "Don't get yourselves killed." She yawned. "Y'all got blankets?"  
"Awesome, thanks!" Araija ignored her and opened up the door that leads to a gigantic patio overlooking a gigantic forest with a majority of pine and oak trees. Instantly, a bitter cold breeze filled the short hallway.  
"Oof," Kat grunted and turned around to grab a blanket from her warm bed. "… Blasted crazy children." She muttered and joined them on the patio. She rolled her eyes and stifled a long, "are you _kidding_ me?" kind of sigh. She was greeted with the sight of her girls in oh-so-compromising embraces with Collin, Ron, and Quinn. _Of course. They're teens. They're best friends and probably soon-to-be lovers,_ she pursed her lips, slightly annoyed, and stood and watched, very bored, for whatever wolves they wanted to see.  
There weren't any. They could only hear more howling.


	22. Hiking

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kat gets a dire call the other day and, as usual, forgets to tell everyone about it.  
> Araija is really upset.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Your author Nefae is losing track of the non-existent plotline!  
> Plus, this chapter makes no sense and has literally no relevance to whatever else was happening.

_Previous day during Kat's fourth hour English class:_  
_The phone blared its annoying tone obnoxiously behind Kat just as she was explaining the concept of passive and critical tone. Her students chuckled at her annoyed look, but otherwise stayed quiet when she picked it up._  
_"Hello? Katherine Denlär speaking."_  
_Trevor's voice greeted her. "Hey! Glad you could pick up!"_  
_She sighed. "What did you do this time?"_  
_"What! I didn't do anything!"_  
_"Uh-huh. Sure. What's up?"_  
_It was his turn to sigh. "Well, truthfully, I'm not sure. Manen came to my office an hour ago and told me the Aerospace-stationed geographers captured some suspicious activity in Reon."_  
_"Everything in and from that country is weird and suspicious, Trevor."_  
_Her classes usually like to try and listen in on her phone calls since they are usually from Trevor most of the time. He always has something interesting to say. She usually tells them what's going on, though._  
_"True, true." He laughed. "But…"_  
_"…But what?"_  
_"Yeah, okay, yeah, I'll tell her that." She heard him say quietly, as he probably was talking with someone else. "Uh, update on that, Manen says they think the Feral Tribes are readying for war."_  
_She furrowed her eyebrows. "What? Wait, repeat that again?"_  
_"They think the Feral Tribes in Reon are preparing for war."_  
_"War? Seriously? Christ-I… I gotta… Trevor, I can't leave right now! I'm in the middle of c-"_  
_"Kat-"_  
_"Pack my bags and fi-"_  
_"Kat!"_  
_She sighed. "Sorry, I-"_  
_"I did not say the Feral Tribes are going to war. This is just what they think they saw."_  
_"A-Alright… Sorry… Should I-should I come tomorrow, though?"_  
_"That wouldn't be a bad idea."_  
_"M'kay…"_  
_There was a short pause. "Gonna be alright for the rest of the day?" He asked, concerned._  
_"Yeah." She bit her lip anxiously. "Hey, man, thanks for telling me. I'll be there bright and early tomorrow morning."_  
_"No need to drive yourself. I'm sending someone to pick you up at five."_  
_"Sounds good… thanks."_  
_"No problem. Hey, have a good day, yeah?"_  
_"Yeah, you too. Seeya."_  
_Their phone call ended._

__

_____ _

 

"Kat! Why is one of your trucks outside?" Aowin asked.  
"Oh, falvka _rax_ \- blessed- gods! Ahaha… Hey, girls, I'm so sorry this is short notice, I completely forgot to tell you guys this yesterday, but uh…I got to go to the SMA today. There's been a report of some suspicious activity in Reon, and I need to be there to check. Just in case." She said, panicked, and picked up a couple bags full of whatever she needed and dropped them at the front door.  
Everyone was confused. "Wait, now?" Araija asked.  
"Yes, right now," Quinn answered for her. He put an arm on the small of Aowin's back for comfort. Her eyes were slightly wide with panic.  
"Kat, are you going to stay for a long time?" She asked hesitantly.  
"I have no idea, honey. I'm so sorry, guys. Listen, I love you all, have fun today, and please, for the love of the gods, do not get in any trouble today. I'm sending an email to Leona to let her know what's up." She pulled on her bright white uniform coat and buttoned it quickly. "Whatever she says, goes." She slipped on her long boots and tied them as fast as she could. "You guys know the drill. Do as she says, yadda yadda…" She huffed and pulled her hair up into a ponytail high upon her head and slipped on a pair of earmuffs. "She's not as chill as I am, okay? I'm so sorry I forgot to tell you yesterday." She yawned and picked up her bags again.  
Sofie, Ron, and Collin ran down the stairs. "What's going on?"  
"Ask your sisters. Listen, I gotta go." She gave them a sympathetic, tight-lipped smile, and hugged them the best she could with everything in her arms. Araija, speechless, just opened the door for her and watched her toss her bags into the back of the white and black truck. Two men wearing a similar-looking white uniform as her reorganized the bags she carelessly threw and waved to them.  
"Kat!" Collin yelled after her.  
"Yeah?"  
"Tell Trevor I say hi!"  
"Me, too!"  
"Yeah, same!"  
"Tell him that he's still short!"  
"Ooh! And that his sad pumpkin face matches his expression!"  
She laughed, smiled brilliantly, and nodded. "Will do! Have fun, you guys! I'll text you later!" And with that, her door slammed shut, and the truck drove away. 

With a soft sigh, Araija closed the front door and bowed her head. She clenched her hands tightly against her sides to try and calm down. "Araija?" Quinn asked, concerned.  
"Hey, sh-she'll inform us of what's going on this afternoon… it's nothing to worry about right now," Aowin offered.  
She loves these guys. "I know," She said as softly as possible. She rubbed her hands against her thighs to try and ease her anxiety and then looked up at everyone. "It's alright. I know." Collin gave her a slightly pained smile. He knows exactly how much Kat means to her. Aowin shares her pain, too. The magnitude of their loyalty to the red-haired woman is endless. "I just hate it when she has to leave so suddenly."  
"We all do."  
Ron opened and closed his mouth, hesitant about what to say. "Uh," He ran his hand through his hair. "I'm gonna go, um…get ready." Sofie joined him. "For school," He finished quickly.  
Quinn nodded, making a weird face and thinking, We have one whole hour left to get ready, and walked back upstairs to the kitchen with Aowin, talking with her quietly.  
Araija and Collin stood in the doorway quietly. She sighed. "Well, we get to see Leona again, I guess." Collin shrugged at that and patted her back. "I mean, we get food. Personal chef-style food."  
He snorted. "Yeah. Wait, will we be able to hang out?"  
"I dunno," She shrugged. "I hope so."

 

"Leona!" Everyone exclaimed happily when they saw her walking from Kat's driveway. She looked up, momentarily confused, but then horrified as the six rowdy teenagers all sprinted in her direction with their arms wide open, ready to tackle-hug her at any second. "Hiiii!"  
"Hey again!" She laughed out happily. "How was your guys' day?"  
"Boring!" Araija yelled. "It's because Kat wasn't here!"  
"D'awww, well, I'm sure she'll be back soon."  
"I had a great day, actually," Aowin said, elated. "Today in geography class we…" She went through her entire day excitedly, reciting the events to nearly minute detail. Occasionally, someone would sneak in a comment or a short relation to her story.  
"Well, that sounds very exciting!" Leona smiled and stood in the middle of the gigantic, vaulting entryway of Kat's house. "So, how much homework do you all have?"  
"Practically nothing."  
"Same."  
"Eh, a little bit, but it shouldn't take too long."  
She looked thoughtful. "So, who wants to go on a walk?" 

"Haha! Yay!" Sofie pushed Araija's side roughly, causing her to nearly crash into a tree and fall into the brush below. "I win! I get to lead!"  
Leona, along with everyone else, rolled her eyes and sighed at their childishness.  
"Shut up! Fine. But next time, I will lead the group!" Araija pouted and playfully glared at her sister.  
"You guys are scaring away all life in this forest," Ron said dryly. "The whole point of this walk is to enjoy nature and the life of the forest. Not scare it away!"  
"Right on, man!" Collin fist-bumped him  
"Hey!" The girls both whined at the same time. "Rude!"  
"They aren't wrong," Leona said.  
Aowin and Quinn snickered and laughed at them, though keeping to themselves and talking together quietly. They lagged behind the group. "Dude, I ship it," Aowin whispered.  
"Ship who?" She looked over at him with a "you know who" look. "Ah," He nodded with a small smirk. "I totally see it for both of them."  
"Guys, look!" Ron hissed out and pointed to something between the trees. "Do you think we should leave?"  
Leona squinted, looking for what he was pointing at, and then gasped. "Yep. Turn back."  
"What? What is it?" Collin asked.  
"Wolf."  
There were a couple short, distressed noises, and then they fled. "How did it not hear us?" Aowin asked, incredulously.  
"Well, sure looked like it was eating something to me," Ron said.  
"Oh, ew," She cringed and shook her head quickly. 

"…and we heard some wolf howls last night," Collin explained.  
"Oh, so _that's_ what that was. I heard it too, then." Leona crossed her arms thoughtfully. "I think it's best we stay inside for these next couple of days. Oh, boys?"  
"Yeah?"  
"Your parents know you're here?"  
Ron shrugged. "Mine don't really care. This place is basically my home, too, so they figure that I'm over here whenever I'm not home."  
"Same," Quinn said as he laid on the floor, stretching like a cat.  
"Yeah, Kat's like another mom for me." Collin shifted his legs from where they were uncomfortably crunched up to laying over Araija's lap. She held back a devious smile and started to pinch them softly.  
"Well, text them, anyway, just in case they're worried."  
They all did, quickly, and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening with everyone, procrastinating on their homework and wasting their time.


	23. Icy Lake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kat is flown to WinterHelm for another meeting.  
> They fly over an icy lake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *yeets*  
> Late again!  
> Sorry! 
> 
> I'm slowly withering.  
> This is working my brain to its extent.

"Thanks, boys!" Kat said with a big grin and picked up her bags.  
"Of course ma'am," They said in unison and bowed. "Have a good day."  
"You as well!" She strode to the main entrance of the SMA and struggled to get through. The gigantic glass door was heavier when she was carrying three bags instead of one. Why three? Well, she had all that paperwork that still needed to be sent. _Guess there's no need for the mail, now. I'll just throw the boxes at the cadets. Ah, fun._ She grinned and greeted the ladies at the desk. As she waited for the elevator to come down, she and the ladies talked briefly about the plans for the day and the recent big news. I guess everyone knows about what's up with Reon. "See you around, ladies!" She stepped into the elevator and pressed the button to the top floor. Sighing, she looked out the glass that separated her from the rest of the campus. The grass outside green and vibrant, the sky a gorgeous, pure blue, the walls of the school still impeccably white and glowing under the sun. This place is her third home. Before moving into the summer cabin she and Trevor bought years ago, they both spent every waking hour at the school. Kat still has ownership over the dorm room she lived in, so at least she has a place to stay to her lonesome. Trevor's dorm is just next to hers. The rooms themselves are obviously more luxurious than the other ones. More spacious, placed in the right spot so they both could overlook the campus and see almost everything. Several other dorms that were reserved for the higher-up staff at the school, and they could also overlook portions of the campus. 

She slowly walked through the long hallway, struggling with the sheer bulk of her load. "Oh!" Came a surprised gasp. "Good morning, Kat! Mind if I take one of your bags?" Manen offered. She grabbed one from her arm.  
"Thanks," Kat said and quickened her pace. "Where are you headed to?"  
"I was actually just about to come see if you arrived yet. Guess I don't need to, now!" She followed the tall woman, finding great difficulty in keeping up with her long strides.  
"Yeah," She laughed and then dropped her other bags to the floor and pulled out her key to her dorm. "Feels good to be back."  
"I'm glad you think so. How's Savaclorn been for you?"  
"Ah, it's lovely there. You should come visit us sometime." Kat opened the door and picked her bags up again. "Just put that one on the couch. Thanks."  
"If I wasn't so busy all the time, then I would. I'd love to see the girls again," Manen smiled and put her bag on the couch.  
"Whenever, man. I know the girls are eager to see you sometime. I could always drive them here for an afternoon?"  
She hummed. "I like that idea better, actually."  
"Yeah? Cool! I'll try and make a time for whenever that happens." 

Kat and Manen took their time walking to Trevor's main office. The younger blonde explained some of the most recent events Kat wasn't updated on. They were minor things like promotions, how some of her previous students were doing, things like that. Their voices and footsteps echoed throughout the vacant hallways, and the floor below them polished and white to the point where their reflections were visible but blurred. Cadets walking by saluted them both quickly and continued walking with purpose.  
Trevor's office was suddenly in front of them.  
Manen, with a smile, knocked on the door and waited for permission to enter.  
"Ugh, screw that," Kat grumbled out and threw the door wide open. "Guess who's here?!" She exclaimed with a laugh. Poor Trevor, who held papers in his hand, yelped, startled, and dropped them on the floor. Thankfully, they didn't go flying around.  
"Ah! I could've messed up these documents!" Trevor cried out, mocking the croissant vine. Kat and Manen laughed at him. He then smiled. "Good to have ya back, KitKat!"  
"Ey, don't call me that!"  
"Whatever," He set his documents back on his desk and stood up from his chair. "Good morning, Manen. Any other reports since yesterday?"  
"No, sir!" She quipped. "Aside being informed of the meeting you two will be attending in about two hours, nothing."  
"Perfect. Thank you." He nodded his head at the door, indicating that she was dismissed. She closed the door gently behind her, leaving the owners in silence.  
Kat sighed tiredly. "So, where's this meeting going to be?"  
He sighed in turn. "I tried to convince them to have the meeting h-"  
"It's at the base in WinterHelm?"  
"Yeah," He said guiltily.  
"Alright," She said, letting out a frustrated grunt. "What's being covered? Do I have to say anything?"  
"Well, I know for sure this meeting is about the reports on Reon. I'm pretty sure there's going to be some crazy theories on what's happening there. You know how those WinterHelm people are…"  
"Sure," She laughed. "I do think they will be taking things seriously, though. We need to remember who our allies are. We're allies with Sanctuary, Zellium, and Elderwood in that area, and I know they're been having problems with them as well… Especially Zellium. Rumor has it they sent Demrian assassins or something sinister like that to Zellium's southernmost cities and took everyone."  
Trevor nodded. "They were rogue mages. King and Queen Zellium survived unharmed. The four who ended up saving the whole city included three year one Apprentices and Meb," He said grimly.  
Kat's eyes widened. "Meb?!"  
"And the Apprentices."  
"Wow."  
"I know, right?" 

 

(I'm too lazy to finish that conversation)  
The two ate breakfast together in the mess hall and fooled around: visiting other classrooms, teasing cadets, and taking a trip down memory lane. Kat remembered when they would do this almost daily back when they first opened up the SMA. Manen is like a messenger for them, but she does a majority of her work in the infirmary wing, though. 

It was finally time they boarded the helicopter that would take them to WinterHelm for their meeting. Trevor watched with fascination as they flew over the huge farmlands of Savaclorn, over giant hills, above forests, over _icy lakes,_ and eventually, passing over WinterHelm's snowcapped mountains and to their small base right inside of them. They stopped to take a couple pictures of the country below–encased by a circular wall of mountains. From the landing pad, which was placed rather far away due to safety concerns, they took a light train, also inside of the mountains, that led to the base.  
"I need to send that email to Leona," Kat said randomly.  
"… You probably should, yeah."


	24. Full Moons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annabeth is sneaky again. It angers Araija.   
> They have a really short fight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh   
> sorry, it's terrible today.

"Guys, I heard it's a full double-moon tonight!" Araija exclaimed excitedly. "Supposedly, something hectic is supposed to happen. Like, we all will have something weird happen to us today."  
"You seriously believe that?" Annabeth asked from the front of the classroom. Her voice was filled with condescending disbelief.  
"Yeah, well, when are they ever wrong?"  
"Pfft! I have no idea!"  
"There you go, then! You don’t! So, you can't prove them wrong!"  
Collin tapped her shoulder. "How do you find out about this stuff?"  
She pulled open an app on her phone. "It gives me horoscopes for the day, week, month, and year, and then there's another setting here…" She tapped a couple things and then a picture of the first moon filled the top half of her screen. "So, it shows me the phase schedule, supposed spiritual connections to it… that sort of stuff."  
"Woah, who designed it?"  
"No idea! You want it on your phone?"  
"Heck yeah! I'll get it later."  
"Sure, sure," She took his phone and typed in a few words quickly, which then pulled up the app's name an logo. "Oh, and it's tonight from… eleven to three."  
He hummed thoughtfully. "…You think Leona would let us stay up to see it?"  
"Probably not. We can just sneak out or something. Oh, wait, I'm going to be at Leona's tonight." She groaned and squished her face with her hands in frustration. "I'll still ask, and then run to your place to see it."  
"Yeah, I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind. We're probably going to try and see it, anyway."  
"Do you guys live next to each other or something?" Taylor asked and sat on Araija's desk. She yelped as the shorter girl pushed her off. "Rude!" She exclaimed.  
"We live close to each other," Collin said. "Not neighbors, just the next street down, really. Ron and Quinn live right by me, though."  
"Cool. I li-"  
Annabeth interrupted Taylor, asking, "Wait, Collin, which street are you on?"  
"Garrison."  
She gasped. "I'm on Hugh Street! So, I'm the street across from you, then!"  
"I guess so," He said, less than pleased. _She better not try and come over._ Araija was thinking the same. 

The rest of the day was slow, and Araija was slowly growing more annoyed as Annabeth kept saying hello to Collin. But then again, she hates that blonde girl. She hates her fake personality; how she feeds him lies and makes him doubt their friendship. She hates how she tries to tear them apart whenever she gets the chance. She doesn't even know why she does it in the first place, either. The only guess she has that would be reasonable would be because she's jealous. Jealous of Araija's ability to get so close to him despite being the rude and extroverted person she is. She's always speculated that the blonde has a thing for Collin, and simply couldn't accept the fact that she can't always get what she wants.

 _Something weird will happen to me today? I wonder what it could be?_ Annabeth thought. She sat on her bed, covered in her white quilt, and holding another blanket just as white tightly around her small frame. _Could it have been finding out that Collin lives on the next street?_ She doodled a few hearts on her notebook paper and sighed. Her phone buzzed a couple times. 

**[4:01] _tay.lord:_** _heyheyheyheyeheyehyehyeheyyeyeheyhehyyhehhhyyffyfffff_  
**[4:01] _tay.lord:_** _u going to see the moons tonight?!_  
**[4:01] _tay.lord:_** _I know collins gunna b there so I think u should lol_  
**[4:01] _Me:_** _um okay I guess then are u going?_  
**[4:01] _tay.lord:_** _yeah totally ill just meet u at ur house door mk_  
**[4:02] _Me:_** _sure ig text me before u get here so I can get ready_  
**[4:02] _tay.lord:_** _ok see u then_

_I wonder if Annabeth is secretly bi?_ Taylor wondered as she set her phone aside. 

 

{10:40 P.M.}  
"Hey! Leona! Leona! Leona! Leona! Leona! Leona! Leona!"  
"Whaaat?" She asked impatiently and set her book down.  
"I'm gonna go see the moons tonight! Just so you know!" Araija announced, cocking her hip to the side and placing a hand on it sassily.  
"What do you mean?"  
"It's a full double moon tonight!" She exclaimed. "Duh!"  
Leona raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, I had no idea. Make sure you're warm, though. When is it?"  
"Tonight at eleven to three."  
"Oh, wow…um, okay."  
"Yeah?"  
"…Yeah."  
"Okay, cool! I'm heading over to Collin's place, then!"  
"What?"  
"Bye!" Araija slipped on her coat and shoes and opened the door.  
_That sneaky girl._ "Fine. Be safe!"  
"Sorry! I'm broke and unmarried! Can't do that yet!"  
Leona squawked, horrified and embarrassed. _I walked right into that one._ She sighed and face-palmed. _Of course, Araija would say that._

The short black-haired teen pounded on his door and rung the bell an excessive number of times. It was her signature way of letting people know that she's arrived.  
"Coming!" Cried Collin's mother. She opened the door with a large smile. "Araija! How lovely to see you again! Come on in!" She stepped aside and let the girl in. "How are you?"  
"Wonderful!" She beamed. "I'm wondering if Collin can come to watch the double moons with me tonight."  
"Well, a-"  
"Who's it, now?" Came the gruffy voice of his father. "Oh, Araija," He commented, surprised. "Well, it's certainly a surprise to see you here! Collin actually just left with a lovely young blonde lady who calls herself Anna. His…girlfriend? Oh, and there was another lady there, too."  
The color drained from her face, and her heart sunk. She slouched, gaped, and then sputtered out a high-pitched, "Girlfriend?" She twisted her arms together and linked her fingers tightly. She suddenly felt vulnerable, exposed, helpless. Her usual unwavering aura of confidence cracked. _Collin. Annabeth. Together? Who's the other girl?_  
"Yep! Apparently! How cute they are!" His mother sighed proudly.  
His father held the same look of pride. "I think he was embarrassed into silence," He laughed out. "Poor boy was stutterin' like a broken record! 'But-but! I-I don't th-!'" He mocked. His mother chuckled along with him.  
"Yes, it was quite adorable to see him so flustered like that."  
_Annabeth and her trickery._ Araija's eyes widened... _But what if it's not?_ "Oh," She forced out. She attempted to push aside her bubbling fury and put on a smile. "Thank you! I'll go find them!" _I'm going to kill them._

"Good luck, dear!" His mother called after her once she stormed through the doorway.  
"It's not luck I need," She hissed out under her breath to herself. "I'll be needing the strength of the stars tonight." She clenched her fists, feeling a small, numbing prickling sensation encase them. Her magic gateways are wide open, allowing her to release a small stream of her electric magic into her hands. The purple shocks, being very faint and small and so far harmless, traveled up her arms slightly.  
The magic lit up a dim path for her. She didn't realize exactly how dark it was outside, and how she was slowly beginning to feel a deep, painfully cold chill set in. She has no phone, no hat, and no gloves. She only has her coat and boots serving any warmth. I am not going to walk back that far just for a hat and gloves. I'll be fine. Now running solely on adrenaline, her magic grew brighter as she kept aimlessly walking. Who knows where they could be? They could be far out in the fields of Savaclorn, for all she knows. Stranded in the endlessness of crops ready for harvest. She has no clue where Annabeth's house is despite knowing it's located on Hugh Street. _I should maybe check there first…_

 

Taylor closed and locked the door behind her, adjusted her hat and gloves, and marched on over to Annabeth's house. She scurried across the dirt road and cursed the cold weather. The blonde's house is a soft gray with freshly-painted white trims around the windows and along the edge of the gray roof. There are three giant birch trees in her yard along with a couple bushes and a quaint white mailbox at the end of the driveway. She knows Annabeth has a passion for gardening since there are pots full of lively, colorful flowers of all kinds lined along the house and mailbox. They are dying, though, because of the cold. _How little people know about her. Such a shame._ Taylor knocked on the door and rang the doorbell twice. She waited, rubbing her hands together anxiously. Tonight seems like a good night… She didn't really notice when she developed a small crush on the blonde. She has always known that she is bi, but never in her life did she expect to fall for her of all people. Unfortunately, she likes Collin. Almost obsessively. It's caused her to go mad, practically, with hatred for Araija. _The girl's done nothing to anyone! She's just got some unresolved anger issues, that's all…_  
The door opened, revealing the blonde she was just thinking about. "Hey! It's about time you opened the door!" The brunette exclaimed with a wide smile.  
"It's about time you got here!" Annabeth responded with the same tone and let her inside.  
"It's cold out there!"  
"Not really."  
"Yeah, w-well, that's because you're the Ice Queen!"  
"Whatever." Annabeth scoffed and rolled her eyes. "I'll bring extra blankets and stuff for you. I have a bag…"  
"Good idea. So, where are we gonna go?"  
Annabeth froze in place, and spoke slowly, hesitantly, almost, "…I was actually thinking we could go and pick up Collin first? I um-"  
Taylor's heart lurched a little bit. "No, yeah, totally! I understand….So, about those blankets?"  
"Oh, yeah! Let me go get those!" She ran upstairs and shoved some blankets into a bag. She threw it down the stairs, at Taylor, and then pulled on her own heavy winter clothes to keep warm. "Ready?"  
"Ready!"  
The two girls set out to Collin's house.

 

 _'Your goal is to keep the balance between your inner-self and your outer-self, whilst also maintaining peace with others. This includes respect and politeness towards all even if negative events outweigh the good; if one tries harm to you; if another harms a loved one. Communication and empathy create an optimistic serenity.'_ Collin rubbed his eyes tiredly and squinted at the small words. _'…jealousy is at their core.'_ He frowned and thought of Annabeth and what she admitted at the festival. _'If of a friend, do what you see fit to maintain satisfaction between the two.'_  
The door knocked, and he slammed the book shut so hard and so fast, the loud thump of the pages together caused his father to open up his door quicker than he hoped. "What was that?"  
"Oh, sorry, I dropped a book," Collin lied.  
"Ah." He nodded. "Hey, there's a couple ladies at the door for you?"  
"Who?"  
"Your girlfriend Anna and a brunette."  
_Girlfriend?_ "G-girlfriend?"  
"That's who she introduced herself as, yeah! Congrats, my boy! I wish you would've told your mother and me sooner! This calls for a celebration when you get back!"  
"B-But-"  
"Aw, embarrassed, are we?"  
"I-I never- We-"  
"Keep telling yourself that, son!" He laughed and closed the door gently.  
Girlfriend? Anna? Annabeth Anna? What in the world? He got up, confused, and also irritated, and slowly made his way downstairs.  
"Collin! Hi!" Annabeth smiled. "I was wondering if you'd like to come to see the moons with us?"  
"Um." The book's words really hit him deep. _'…to maintain satisfaction between the two.'_ He sighed. "Yeah, sure." He bit his lip to prevent himself from taking back what he said. _Keep the balance… keep the balance… I'm so confused._  
She looked absolutely ecstatic. "Awesome! Go get changed, silly!" He rolled his eyes and then walked back upstairs, shame feeling like a weight that made it seem impossible to take one step up. Wait, how did they even find my house? 

The trio entered the freezing October outdoors, preparing for a walk to Savaclorn Wizard School's campus to sit on the ledge and watch the sky. The school's campus is open so students can come and watch from there. 

"Dude, that's Araija," Taylor whispered and pointed to a strange-looking purple light.  
"What?" Annabeth asked, snorting. "What's she using her magic for?"  
Collin gasped and raised his arms, cupping his mouth, preparing to call out to her.  
"Don't you dare!" Annabeth hissed and yanked his arms down.  
"Why?" He shook out of her grip and stuck his hands in his pockets.  
"Because we're going on a date!"  
"No! We're not! Annabeth, we're not dating!" Collin cried out angrily. 

Araija heard a firm 'no' somewhere behind her. She turned around and gasped. _It's them! I-I…_ Annabeth's shrill laughter echoed off the trees and houses as she saw her lean into him. It was more than friendly. The third girl, who looks like Taylor, was walking slightly ahead of them, ignoring their antics.  
Collin turned around, looking back at Araija, and gasped when their eyes met. _Oh no._ His eyes widened with fear as she started walking towards them quickly. Annabeth calmed down from laughing at him. "What is it?" She asked, winded. She turned around and then burst into another round of rude laughter. "Oh look! Here she comes!" 

Araija's hands were alight with blue and purple electricity, meaning the spell she was preparing was definitely intended for harm. She snarled and held them out, charging orbs, and then preparing to throw them at Annabeth. The blonde raised her hand quickly and a blockade of ice formed. Taylor shot out a blue, arcane wall between the two just before the lightning Araija ended up throwing at exploded onto the ice. The sheer force of her spell caused it to shatter, and from it sounded a loud zap that filled the night for blocks away. Then, the two girls were suddenly lifted off the ground. Collin, with clenched teeth, held his arms up shakily with his hands in fists.  
He uses force magic, and force magic allows people to push and lift things off the ground. That includes people.  
"That's…enough!" He struggled to yell, and it got a message across.

Three years of force training did not prepare him at all for the sudden energy drain when he released the spell. The girls fell to the ground on their backs, and Collin collapsed, nearly unconscious. The amount of energy needed to hold them for five seconds one foot off the ground was… ridiculous.  
Taylor rushed to his side and knelt down by him. She put her hair behind her ear and put her fingers against his neck, checking for a pulse. "Okay, okay, you're good. Collin, you awake?" She rubbed his back gently.  
He weakly nodded. "Yeah," He rasped out. "Tired."  
"Totally. Uh," She debated what to do. "Hold on." She stood up and threw a weak shield spell on both girls and returned to his side. "Look what you guys have done!" She scolded. "He's barely conscious right now!"  
They looked over at her, shocked.  
"Yeah! You guys better solve whatever problems you've got going on right now!" 

Collin lifted his head weakly and noticed how everyone's eyes flashed with that same glowing purple stuff he sees Night and Violet embodied as. Taylor and Annabeth stared at each other momentarily, while Araija stared at him.  
His energy returned very suddenly, which sent a wave of nausea through his body. He grunted and started to stand up. Araija immediately rushed to help him stand up. Her arms wrapped around his middle, and her strong legs pushed them both up. Taylor and Annabeth, seeming to have forgotten about _everything_ that just happened, were walking together towards the school without a care in the world. _What is going on?_


	25. Frostbite (Day 24 pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> No surprise here, Araija gets frostbite.  
> #Cara (Collin and Araija's ship name) finally happens.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am officially 5 chapters behind.

Araija immediately started apologizing. "Collin, I'm sorry I-"  
"Save it," He grunted out and took in a few deep, calming breaths.  
She kept her arms around him. "A-are you okay?"  
He nodded and stood up to full height with one of his hands resting on his stomach. He looked pale. "Yeah…" He deeply breathed for a little while longer before testing his balance: slowly taking steps, making sure he wouldn't grow dizzy and nearly pass out again.  
"I-I didn't realize your magic is that strong… I'm sorry, I shouldn't have. I just snapped." Araija let him go, keeping a careful eye on the tall boy.  
"S'fine. Hopefully, she'll back off now," He said, much stronger this time. "So, do you want to go see the moons or not?"  
She nodded excitedly. "Of course I do! Let's go!" Just like she always does, she grabbed hold of his wrist and started to pull him in the direction of the long, wide dirt road that would lead them to the gigantic corn fields of Savaclorn. He yelped when her ice cold fingers brushed against his wrist. "Collin! Are y-"  
"Your hands!"  
"What? What about them?!"  
"They're ice cold! Where are your gloves?!"  
She pulled his arm harder and walked quicker. "I forgot them, sorry!"  
He frowned and remained silent until they finally made it to a smaller road that led into the fields. It was raised slightly so people walking through could be seen. From the top of the hill-like road they were walking on, the top of the plants were at their waists. Plenty of sight.  
Collin looked up at the sky and gasped. Giant clouds hid the moons, but rays of light shone through them brightly. Stars were made visible around them after a particularly strong gust of cold, arctic wind brushed past them. The clouds passed by quickly and eventually revealed the two glowing orbs at their zenith of beauty. Their gorgeous bright white light illuminated the grass, the golden corn, the trees. They outshone every little star in beauty, detail, and wonder. Araija shuddered violently and breathed on her hands. She looked up at the sky soon after he gasped and made an awestruck noise. She broke into a wide grin and pointed at the moons.  
"Wow! They're so beautiful!"  
He hummed and nodded. "So bright." He smiled. Araija sighed dreamily and kept staring at the sky, shivering. Her lips were parted and turning blue; her cheeks an angry red; her nose running. She kept her hands over her ears, and then she looked over at Collin.  
"Isn't this cool?"  
"Yeah," He paused and frowned again. "Why didn't you bring anything with you?"  
She shrugged and looked at the horizon, a distant and sad look in her eyes. "I figured I'd just steal some from you when I came to pick you up…"  
His heart lurched in his chest. He remained silent for a while, his mouth parted slightly, hesitant to speak. "I'm sorry," he said softly, "about all that with Annabeth."  
Araija did her best to sound relaxed about it. "It's cool….I-I know it wasn't a real thing."  
"But did you? Did you really think it wasn't real?" Collin asked sharply.  
"Yes! Why would I think it's real?" He frowned, and she looked to the ground shamefully. "Alright _fine._ I-I thought it might've been… a possibility."  
He sighed. "This should be the other way around," He grumbled to himself. "Okay, listen. I never wanted any of this to happen with Annabeth, okay? It all started when you threw that damn hot chocolate, and-and then Annabeth just waltzed right in again to hurt us."  
"Yeah, but why us?"  
"Because–" He bit his lip and looked down to his hands.  
"Because…? Collin, you're leaving me on a loose end here. Why us? Did she tell you?"  
"It's because she's jealous," He said quickly. "Of us."  
"Jealous?" Araija gasped. Then she started to chuckle cruelly. "That snake does it all because she's _jealous_ of us?!"  
He added, "Of our relationship." He bit his tongue and winced at how he worded it. "Sorry, I mean friend-"  
"Don't-"  
"-ship."  
They looked at each other silently. Awkwardly. Hopeful nerves bubbling and rising to the top, the tippy top, filling their hearts and bodies, running into their heads, making their muscles move until both of them were wrapped in a warm, tight embrace. Their arms like warm, soft blankets. Comforting and protective; something they both needed on this unbearably cold night.  
"Relationship, huh?" Araija mused, her breath hot against his neck. "Tell me if I'm wrong or something, but–"  
"There's no need to. Really, I know what you're thinking."  
"Oh yeah?" She squirmed out of the hug, still shuddering. "Prove it!"  
"Uh," He made an awkward face. "I don't know how…"  
She groaned loudly. "C'mon! It's the easiest thing to do when you don't know how to say the words!"  
He remained silent, thinking hard. _What w–oh. Oh._ He realized exactly what she meant. He looked at her with his eyebrows raised. A look of pure surprise. "You want me to-" He smirked.  
"Ugh, it's not a want, but like–"  
"You want me to kiss you, don't you!" He exclaimed, teasing.  
Her face flushed hotly, and she pressed her frostbitten fingers to her cheeks. "Not a want…" She stammered.  
"Yeah! But you _insisted_ on it!" He pointed a finger at her, jabbing her shoulder gently, and bearing a wide grin. (He must admit, however, that he would and will do it.) His heart hammered against his ribcage dangerously. He was worried that it would fly right out and into the night.  
"Shut up!" She cried out through an embarrassed laugh. She pushed his shoulder roughly and turned away. _He's teasing. He's teasing. He thinks it's funny._ She felt her eyes burn slightly. _Why did I even say anything?_

Annabeth looked over at Taylor curiously. The green-eyed brunette was being oddly quiet. Usually, she'd have struck up a conversation already, loaded with more and more to say, more things to joke about, more drama and gossip, but not tonight. She was perfectly calm, straight-faced, quiet.  
"Taylor?" Annabeth dared to ask. "You okay?"  
"Yup! Perfect! Why?" Taylor looked over at her.  
"Well, you've been really quiet."  
She shrugged. "Eh, I guess. Hey, does something feel… off… to you?"  
"What do you mean?"  
"I dunno," She shrugged again. "I mean, it just kinda feels like I've forgotten something y'know?"  
The blonde frowned and furrowed her eyebrows thoughtfully. She tried to remember what all happened during the day, what she and Taylor talked about… nothing. "I don't think I've forgotten anything."  
"Yeah, whatever. I dunno, some wild stuff happens on full moons, lemme tell ya!" Taylor barked a laugh and patted her back. She draped her arm around her small shoulders and continued to talk about creepy legends that were rumored to happen on a full moon.  
Annabeth led her to the small group of girls she hangs out with every day. "Hey, guys," She greeted. The other ladies waved and smiled at her. "Isn't it pretty?" She nodded her head towards the moons.  
"Yeah."  
"I wish my skin were as smooth as that moon."  
"Dude, same!"  
Taylor snorted and agreed. "Smooth as a baby's bum!" The other girls laughed along and gazed back at the sky


	26. Deer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Collin and Araija finally get together. (Sheesh, about time, huh?)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yikes. I am extremely late.

"I'm pretty sure you want me to."   
"Can we just drop it already?!" Araija whined.   
"But this is an important milestone in our relationship!" Collin grasped her shoulders tightly and gently shook her. "Why are you denying it?!"   
"Because all you're doing is teasing me!"   
"It's cute!"   
She shrank in on herself shyly. "Cute?"  
"Yes," He sighed out. "I-I really like you, Araija."   
She shut her eyes and let her head fall. "Are you… are you sure?"   
His hands gripped her shoulders tightly. "Yes! Araija, I'm being serious! Of course, I'm sure!"   
"M-me too. I-"   
He sighed quickly and happily and held her close. His arms were wrapped around her shoulders and waist. His face was buried in the crook of her neck, and he was laughing happily. "Thank the gods," He breathed. She felt tears of joy and insecurity prick her eyes.   
"What is it, then?" Araija asked shyly.  
"Huh?" Collin squished her and grasped her hands gently.   
"Us."   
He went even redder than she is. "Uh–well, um… if-if you'd want to date, I-I wouldn't mind…"   
She nodded quickly. "Yes. Yes, please, really, I really do!" She bounced on her heels and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. "I-I hope you realize how happy you make me. Especially right now." 

Collin felt his body buzz with nerves and energy and happiness, and he broke into a wide grin. His heart was soaring and flying and thumping all over the place, and his stomach was filled with nervous fluttering butterflies. He felt his face burning as he pressed a kiss on her cheek in return. She practically glowed. Her dark blue eyes sparkling with the stars' reflections as she gazed into his equally-lit eyes. They stayed like that for a few minutes more–enjoying each others' presence, until Collin realized:   
"We need to get you inside before your frostbite gets worse."   
She gasped. "Gods, you're right!" She breathed heavily onto her hands and rubbed them together fiercely. "Shit!"   
"Wait." He peeled off his own and grasped her hands. "Take them. I obviously don't need them right now." With shaky hands, she slipped the warm, black gloves onto her red hands and sighed. Collin worked on pulling his hat down onto her head at the same time. 

Neither of them could believe how perfect everything is at this moment. With their hands locked together, Araija couldn't help but fawn over how her small hand fit perfectly within his, and how their sides seemed to fit together perfectly. Of course, she noticed this before, but now it didn’t feel cute–like a best friend type of cute. No, this is real. _This is love._ She pressed a soft kiss to the back of his hand as they slowly walked along the dirt road that would eventually lead them back to Leona's house.   
"Look," Collin whispered. He nudged her shoulder and pointed to a dark corner by one of the houses. "A deer." She gasped softly. Her eyes strained to see it in the dark, but it was there. It had a gorgeous dark brown fur coat with intricate blond patterns traveling along its side and up its back.  
"Cute," She whispered back with a small smile.   
"…Yeah," He said, slowly, as he happened to notice its eyes flicker with that unfortunately-familiar purple magic.   
"You good?"   
"Oh… Um, yeah. I'm getting a little cold."   
"Let's go! Can't have you getting sick." Araija's short but powerful legs sped up quickly as they finally passed by where the deer was. Their quick walking soon turned into light jogging and then a race to get home. 

"WE'RE HOME!" Araija screamed.   
Leona yelped, startled, and dropped the remote on the floor. "Gods! Stop _doing_ that!"   
"Sorry!"   
She sighed and got off the couch. "Oh, hello, Collin. You guys are back rather early."   
The two started to laugh guiltily. "Well, you see… I think I got frostbite."   
"What?!" Leona squawked.   
"She didn't bring gloves or a hat."   
"Haha… whoops?"   
"Goodness! Araija, go to the kitchen. I'll get Kat's stuff, hold on. Collin, make yourself comfy."   
He took his hat and gloves from Araija and watched her disappear into the kitchen with a small, amused smirk. After hanging up his coat on the coat rack next to the door, he texted his parents and hurried to join his girlfriend. _Girlfriend… wow._ He grinned happily and passed through the doorway.   
"You idiot," He laughed out and shyly nudged her.   
"Hey! I was planning on stealing some from you! But I guess I forgot to ask."   
_What?_ He panicked for a moment. _She doesn't remember what happened?_ As a spur of the moment, last-resort response, dramatically, he rested a hand upon his forehead and exclaimed, "How dare you rely on me for things you have! Ooh! I am hurt!" This is bad.   
She snorted and breathed onto her hands again. "This really, really hurts. LEONA!"   
"I'm right here, Araija."   
"It's that weird healing gel right?"   
She squinted her eyes and read the small words on the back of a white tube. "I think so."  
"How'd she even come across this kind of stuff, anyway?" Collin asked curiously. He also asked to try and get his mind to focus on something other than Night and Violet's meddling.  
"I'm guessing she got this stuff from the SMA." She squeezed a large lump of it on her hand. "She gave me too many of these things." Araija laid her hands flat on the kitchen island and winced as Leona's hands delicately applied the viscous, clear ointment all over her fingers and carefully on her ears.   
"I want to know how this stuff works."   
"Go to Cloud and you will," Leona stated matter-of-factly and rinsed the remaining cream off her hands. "Oh, Araija, don't do anything stupid with your hands or ears, okay?"   
"Whatever."


	27. Forest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Night and Violet go away.   
> Collin is oblivious about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oof. I've never been this productive in my life.

"Perfect! This is absolutely perfect!" Violet exclaimed.   
"Yes. What about Annabeth?"   
"We weren't summoned for her. Collin summoned us for himself."   
"Yes. But what about Annabeth's mischief?" Night asked sternly.   
The other girl snorted. "This part of the prophecy's already been fulfilled. Our prophecies never change, and you know that."   
Night sighed and leaned against the trunk of a large tree. The twins were currently in their shadow-like spectral state to conserve and also restore energy. Two powerful entities shoved into one physical being, while also not having much skill in shapeshifting, takes an immense amount of energy. Even gods and goddesses have their limits. "Should we let her go with Taylor? I mean, they're great."   
"Meh…"   
_"Meh?_ What's that supposed to mean?"   
"Won't she always have the remaining love left behind?"   
"Dearest sister, you always seem to forget how much power we really have, and how anything is possible with magic."   
Violet whistled. "That's right!" She laughed. "Whoops!" Night rolled her eyes and smiled. "I'm so excited to see what Ron and Sofie will bring. Quinn and Aowin are amazing. It's so funny how little influence we have in all their lives, and everything is coming together perfectly."  
"Puh, you're right about that. Anyway, are you ready to go?"   
Her sister, sitting on a branch close to hers, sighed. "No, not really. I-I really have fun doing this, you know?"   
"Physically interfering?"   
"…Yeah. It gives people a sense of hope. I always sense that."   
"Mm, you're right. We can't keep doing this for much longer. We always run out of energy."   
"I know, I know. We're not specialized in those magics, I get it. I-I just love feeling their hope and joy and-"   
"Collin detested it, and you know it! He was always suspicious, oh, and also very paranoid."   
"Okay, well, he's one of the most sensible of our clients!"   
"Clients?"   
"Shut up!" Violet whined, embarrassed. "What else do we call them?"   
"Damsels in distress?" Night suggested, snorting. "I'm kidding. Yes, we can call them that."   
"Hey, wait, didn't we have this conversation a couple millennia ago?"   
"Probably. How'd you even remember that?"  
"I dunno."   
They sighed in unison and peered between the tree's branches and up at the stars and moons. Strong winds caused the trees to creak and lean and shed more of their colorful leaves. Animals scurried around occasionally, yelping and yipping to their families, and finding places for hibernation. The sounds of nature filled their thoughtful, longing-filled silence.   
"Alright," Violet said softly. "L-let's get going, now. I'm sure we have other people that need our help more."   
Night sighed and followed her sister as they flew to Collin's house. Much to their relief, he hadn't returned from spending time with Araija at Leona's house yet. They removed the possession bond they had on the cat and searched for the Tome of Fellowship: their prophecy book.   
"Ah, here it is." Violet furrowed her eyebrows. "Should he remain our successor?"   
"No," Night said while shaking her head. "Look at how he reacted when we pressed for him to read the book."   
"True."   
"Let's take it back. We'll find someone else."   
Night Violet returned to being a normal kitten, and the book vanished from its spot inside a drawer in Collin's desk. And just like that, evidence of the two goddesses' presences in his life vanished. 

 

"Are you guys _spying_ on me?!" Collin accused, frustrated, at Night Violet. "Listen, I appreciate you guys' help so much–you have no idea–but _please!_ " He crossed his arms and studied the small, black cat. "I saw the purple. The purple-crimson–whatever color magic it is, I saw it! You've done it—what, three times?" She simply mewed. He grunted and sat down on the side of his bed. "I-It was helpful. Very much so, but um… you've made me all sorts of paranoid. If you don't mind, please, don't do that again. Unless it's _absolutely_ necessary. Like, necessary to the point where someone will be in danger if something's not done." Again, she mewed cutely.   
He rolled his eyes and sighed tiredly. "I'll figure this out tomorrow. Just do your sleep paralysis thingy and tell me everything." He scooted under his covers and turned off his bedside lamp. "Goodnight."


End file.
